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X- 


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RAILROADS: 


Their  Origin  and  Problems. 


BY 

CHARLES  FRANCIS  ADAMS,  Jr. 


NEW  YORK 

G.  P.  P U T N A M’S  SONS 


182  Fifth  Avenue 

1879- 


Copyright  by  G.  P.  Putnam’s  Sons,  1878. 


3S5;  09 
AcL  \n  r 
\ST7  3 


'J' 


-Y 


CONTENTS. 


* 


The  Genesis  of  the  Railroad  System. 
The  Railroad  Problem 


PAGE 

i 

80 


X 


'4 

t- 


< 


I 


THE  GENESIS 


OF  THE 


RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


HERE  are  not  many  stories  that  are  either 


more  interesting  in  themselves  or  better  worth 
telling  for  the  lesson  they  convey,  than  the  story  of 
George  Stephenson  and  his  invention  of  the  locomo- 
tive engine.  It  has  been  told,  too,  in  a manner 
which  upon  the  whole  leaves  little  to  be  desired  ; and 
the  great  and  long  continued  popularity  of  Smiles’ 
biography  is  one  of  the  most  encouraging  symptoms 
of  the  better  and  healthier  education  of  the  times. 
In  the  course  of  his  narrative  the  author  describes 
with  great  literary  skill  the  genesis  of  the  locomo- 
tive. In  doing  so  he  carries  his  readers  along  with 
him  through  episodes  of  opposition,  discourage- 
ment, disappointment,  almost  defeat, — the  interest 
in  the  narrative  and  the  fortunes  of  its  hero  continu- 
ally growing  until  it  exceeds  that  of  any  work  of  fiction 
of  the  day,  even  though  Walter  Scott  himself  was 
then  a living  author, — until  at  last  the  great  dramatic 


i 


2 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


climax  is  reached  in  the  memorable  pageant  of  Sep- 
tember 15  th,  1830.  That  day, — the  day  of  the  formal 
opening  of  the  Manchester  & Liverpool  railroad, — 
was  for  Stephenson  more  than  an  ovation,  it  was  liter- 
ally a triumph.  Guiding  his  locomotive,  the  Northum- 
brian. at  the  head  of  the  train,  not  only  was  he,  even 
though  the  Duke  of  Wellington  himself  was  there, 
the  conquering  hero  observed  of  all,  but  there  were 
also  many  circumstances  about  the  occasion  suggest- 
ive of  other  and  less  attractive  features  of  the  classic 
triumphs.  Reminders  of  public  distress  and  private 
want,  of  the  fickleness  of  popular  favor  and  of  sud- 
den death  itself,  all  wrere  there.  The  season  was 
favorable,  the  skies  wrere  clear,  the  occasion  great; 
but  things  would  not  move  smoothly.  It  was  a day 
of  contre-temps ; a day  to  be  remembered  and  de- 
scribed, but  one  which  nevertheless  must  ever  after 
have  left  a bitter  taste  in  the  mental  mouths  of  those 
who  took  part  in  its  observances.  Unfortunately, 
when  he  came  to  giving  an  account  of  it,  Smiles’ 
appreciation  of  the  dramatic  fitness  of  things  proved 
too  strong  for  his  fidelity  to  facts.  He  thought  his 
hero  deserved  a day  of  triumph  unalloyed,  and  so  he 
gave  it  to  him — as  nearly  as  he  could.  The  terrible 
episode  of  Mr.  Huskisson’s  death  it  was  not  possible 
to  wholly  pass  over;  but  whatever  else  was  there  to 
mar  the  pleasure  of  the  day  could  be  ignored,  and  was 
ignored  accordingly.  The  liberty  wTith  facts  which 
Smiles  thus  allowed  himself  to  take,  was  long  since 
pointed  out  by  Jeaffreson,  in  his  excellent  life  of 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


3 


Robert  Stephenson  ; and  in  that  work  will  be  found 
a much  more  correct  account  than  is  given  by  Smiles 
of  the  events  of  the  Manchester  & Liverpool  open- 
ing. Even  Jeaffreson’s  account  is,  however,  not 
wholly  satisfactory.  It  was  written  too  long  after  the 
event.  He  sees  what  he  undertakes  to  describe  with 
eyes  accustomed  to  railroads  and  locomotives  and 
trains  of  cars.  He  has  with  great  industry  gotten 
all  his  details  together  and  woven  them  into  a skilful 
narrative,  but  it  is,  after  all,  not  the  narrative  of  one 
who  himself  was  there.  Now  the  great  peculiarity 
of  the  locomotive  engine  and  its  sequence,  the  rail- 
road, as  compared  with  other  and  far  more  important 
inventions,  was  that  it  burst  rather  than  stole  or 
crept  upon  the  world.  Its  advent  was  in  the  highest 
degree  dramatic.  It  was  even  more  so  than  the  dis- 
covery of  America.  Of  this  last  we  know  every  detail, 
and  nothing  is  wanting  which  could  lend  an  interest 
to  the  event.  Picturesque  and  absorbing  as  the 
story  is,  however,  the  climax  did  not  work  itself  out 
before  the  very  eyes  of  an  astonished  world.  Co- 
lumbus and  his  crew  alone  on  the  morning  of  the  I2th 
October  1492,  saw  the  shores  of  the  new  world.  And 
yet,  next  to  the  locomotive  engine,  this  was  probably 
the  most  dramatic  of  all  those  discoveries  which  have 
marked  epochs  in  human  history.  The  mariner’s 
compass,  far  more  momentous  in  its  consequences, 
crept  silently  on  a world  which  to  this  day  does  not 
know  when  or  from  whence  or  how  it  came.  It  was 
much  the  same  with  gun-powder.  In  the  case  of 


4 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


printing  it  is  somewhat  different,  for  though  its  in- 
vention has  been  a fruitful  source  of  controversy, 
something  at  least  is  known  of  it.  Hallam,  indeed, 
in  his  Literature  of  Europe,  indulges  in  a flight  of 
rhetoric  somewhat  unusual  with  him  and  which 
reads  queerly,  as  he  speaks  of  Fustenburg’s  Mazarin 
Bible,  the  first  printed  book.  “ It  is,”  he  says, 
“a  very  striking  circumstance,  that  the  high-minded 
inventors  of  this  great  art  tried  at  the  very  out- 
set so  bold  a flight  as  the  printing  of  an  entire 
Bible,  and  executed  it  with  astonishing  success. 
It  was  Minerva  leaping  on  earth  in  her  divine 
strength  and  radiant  armor,  ready  at  the  moment  of 
her  nativity  to  subdue  and  destroy  her  enemies.  . . . 
We  may  see  in  imagination  this  venerable  and 
splendid  volume  leading  up  the  crowded  myriads  of 
its  followers,  and  imploring,  as  it  were,  a blessing  on 
the  new  art  by  dedicating  its  first  fruits  to  the  ser- 
vice of  Heaven.”  “ In  imagination  ” perhaps,  “ we 
may  see  ” all  this,  but  assuredly  the  cotemporary 
world  neither  saw  nor  dreamed  of  it ; on  the  contrary, 
imaginary  processions  apart,  few  things  less  inspiring 
can  be  conceived  than  the  unnoticed  homely  toil  of 
those  poor  German  mechanics  at  Mentz,  who  four 
centuries  ago  launched  upon  an  unconscious  world  the 
great  motive  power  of  all  modern  life.  So  with  the 
loom,  the  steam  engine,  and  electricity.  Each  and  all, 
they  struggled  into  existence  slowly  and  painfully. 
The  world  never  stopped  to  look,  much  less  to  wonder 
at  them.  We  cannot  know  what  people's  sensations 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


5 


were  when  they  first  realized  that  a new  power  had 
appeared,  for  there  was  no  particular  moment  at 
which  they  ever  realized  it.  The  locomotive  engine 
alone  as  soon  as  it  was  seen  was  acknowledged  ; for 
it  must  be  remembered  that  its  one  essential  feature 
— the  multitubular  boiler, — was  first  used  in  Stephen- 
son’s experimental  locomotive,  the  Rocket,  on 
the  Rainhill  trial  course  in  October,  1829,  and  never 
after  that  time  was  the  importance  of  the  new  dis- 
covery denied,  while  the  interest  felt  in  its  further 
development  each  day  widened  and  became  more 
engrossing. 

It  was  this  element  of  spontaneity,  therefore, — 
the  instantaneous  and  dramatic  recognition  of  suc- 
cess, which  gave  a peculiar  interest  to  everything  con- 
nected with  the  Manchester  & Liverpool  railroad. 
The  whole  world  was  looking  at  it,  with  a full  realizing 
sense  that  something  great  and  momentous  was  im- 
pending. Every  day  people  watched  the  gradual 
development  of  the  thing,  and  actually  took  part  in  it. 
In  doing  so  they  had  sensations  and  those  sensations 
they  have  described.  There  is  consequently  an  ele- 
ment of  human  nature  surrounding  it.  The  com- 
plete ignoring  of  this  element  by  both  Smiles  and 
Jeaffreson  is  a defect  in  their  narratives.  They  de- 
scribe the  scene  from  a standpoint  of  forty  years  later. 
Others  described  it  as  they  saw  it  at  the  time.  To 
their  descriptions  time  has  only  lent  a new  freshness. 
They  are  full  of  honest  wonder.  They  are  much 
better  and  more  valuable  and  more  interesting  now 


6 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


than  they  were  fifty  years  ago,  and  for  that  reason 
are  well  worth  exhuming. 

To  introduce  the  contemporaneous  story  of  the 
day,  however,  it  is  not  necessary  even  to  briefly  review 
the  long  series  of  events  which  had  slowly  led  up  to 
it.  The  world  is  tolerably  familiar  with  the  early  life 
of  George  Stephenson,  and  with  the  vexatious  obsta- 
cles he  had  to  overcome  before  he  could  even  secure 
a trial  for  his  invention.  The  man  himself,  however, 
is  an  object  of  a good  deal  more  curiosity  to  us,  than 
he  was  to  those  among  whom  he  lived  and  moved. 
A living  glimpse  at  him  now  is  worth  dwelling  upon, 
and  is  the  best  possible  preface  to  any  account  of  his 
great  day  of  life  triumph.  Just  such  a glimpse  of  the 
man  has  been  given  to  us  at  the  moment  when  at 
last  all  difficulties'  had  been  overcome, — when  the 
Manchester  & Liverpool  railroad  was  completed  ; and, 
literally,  not  only  the  eyes  of  Great  Britain  but  those 
of  all  civilized  countries  were  directed  to  it  and  to  him 
who  had  originated  it.  At  just  that  time  it  chanced 
that  the  celebrated  actor,  John  Kemble,  was  ful- 
filling an  engagement  at  Liverpool  with  his  daughter, 
better  known  in  this  country  as  Mrs.  Frances  Kemble 
Butler.  The  extraordinary  social  advantages  the 
Kemble  family  enjoyed  gave  both  father  and  daugh- 
ter opportunities  such  as  seldom  came  in  the  way 
of  ordinary  mortals.  For  the  time  being  they 
were,  in  fact,  the  lions  of  the  stage,  just  as  George 
Stephenson  was  the  lion  of  the  new  railroad.  As 
was  most  natural  the  three  lions  were  brought 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


7 


together.  The  young  actress  has  since  published 
her  impressions,  jotted  down  at  the  time,  of 
the  old  engineer.  Her  account  of  a ride  side 
by  side  with  George  Stephenson,  on  the  seat  of 
his  locomotive,  over  the  as  yet  unopened  road,  is 
one  of  the  most  interesting  and  life-like  records  we 
have  of  the  man  and  the  enterprise.  Perhaps  it  is 
the  most  interesting.  The  introduction  is  Mrs. 
Kemble's  own,  and  written  forty-six  years  after 
the  experience  : 

“ While  we  were  acting  at  Liverpool,  an  experimental  trip 
was  proposed  upon  the  line  of  railway  which  was  being  con- 
structed between  Liverpool  and  Manchester,  the  first  mesh  of 
that  amazing  iron  net  which  now  covers  the  whole  surface  of 
England,  and  all  civilized  portions  of  the  earth.  The  Liverpool 
merchants,  whose  far-sighted  self-interest  prompted  to  wise  lib- 
erality, had  accepted  the  risk  of  George  Stephenson’s  magnificent 
experiment,  which  the  committee  of  inquiry  of  the  House  of 
Commons  had  rejected  for  the  government.  These  men,  of  less 
intellectual  culture  than  the  Parliament  members,  had  the  ad- 
venturous imagination  proper  to  great  speculators,  which  is  the 
poetry  of  the  counting  house  and  wharf,  and  were  better  able  to 
receive  the  enthusiastic  infection  of  the  great  projector’s  sanguine 
hope  than  the  Westminster  committee.  They  were  exultant 
and  triumphant  at  the  near  completion  of  the  work,  though,  of 
course  not  without  some  misgivings  as  to  the  eventual  success  of 
the  stupendous  enterprise.  My  father  knew  several  of  the  gen- 
tlemen most  deeply  interested  in  the  undertaking,  and  Stephen- 
son having  proposed  atrial  trip  as  far  as  the  fifteen-mile  viaduct, 
they,  with  infinite  kindness,  invited  him  and  permitted  me  to 
accompany  them  : allowing  me,  moreover,  the  place  which  I felt 
to  be  one  of  supreme  honor,  by  the  side  of  Stephenson.  All 
that  wonderful  history,  as  much  more  interesting  than  a romance 


8 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


as  truth  is  stranger  than  fiction,  which  Mr.  Smiles’  biography  of 
the  projector  has  given  in  so  attractive  a form  to  the  world,  I 
then  heard  from  his  own  lips.  He  was  rather  a stern-featured 
man,  with  a dark  and  deeply  marked  countenance  ; his  speech 
was  strongly  inflected  with  his  native  Northumbrian  accent,  but 
the  fascination  of  that  story  told  by  himself,  while  his  tame  dragon 
flew  panting  along  his  iron  pathway  with  us,  passed  the  first 
reading  of  the  Arabian  Nights,  the  incidents  of  which  it  almost 
seemed  to  recall.  He  was  wonderfully  condescending  and  kind, 
in  answering  all  the  questions  of  my  eager  ignorance,  and  I lis- 
tened to  him  with  eyes  brimful  of  warm  tears  of  sympathy  and 
enthusiasm,  as  he  told  me  of  all  his  alternations  of  hope  and 
fear,  of  his  many  trials  and  disappointments,  related  with  fine 
scorn,  how  the  “ Parliament  men  ” had  badgered  and  baffled 
him  with  their  book-knowledge,  and  how,  when  at  last  they  had 
smothered  the  irrepressible  prophecy  of  his  genius  in  the  quak- 
ing depths  of  Chat  Moss,  he  had  exclaimed,  ‘ Did  ye  ever  see  a 
boat  float  on  water  ? I will  make  my  road  float  upon  Chat 
Moss  ! ’ The  well-read  Parliament  men  (some  of  whom,  per- 
haps, wished  for  no  railways  near  their  parks  and  pleasure- 
grounds)  could  not  believe  the  miracle,  but  the  shrewd  Liver- 
pool merchants,  helped  to  their  faith  by  a great  vision  of  immense 
gain,  did  ; and  so  the  railroad  was  made,  and  I took  this  mem- 
orable ride  by  the  side  of  its  maker,  and  would  not  have  ex- 
changed the  honor  and  pleasure  of  it  for  one  of  the  shares  in  the 
speculation.” 

“ Liverpool,  August  26th,  1830. 

“ My  Dear'H : A common  sheet  of  paper  is  enough 

for  love,  but  a foolscap  extra  can  only  contain  a railroad  and  my 
ecstasies.  There  was  once  a man  born  at  Newcastle-upon* 
Tyne,  who  was  a common  coal-digger  ; this  man  had  an  im- 
mense constructiveness,  which  displayed  itself  in  pulling  his 
watch  to  pieces  and  putting  it  together  again  ; in  making  a pair 
of  shoes  when  he  happened  to  be  some  days  without  occupation  ; 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


9 


finally — here  there  is  a great  gap  in  my  story — it  brought  him 
in  the  capacity  of  an  engineer  before  a committee  of  the  House 
of  Commons,  with  his  head  full  of  plans  for  constructing  a rail- 
road from  Liverpool  to  Manchester.  It  so  happened  that  to  the 
quickest  and  most  powerful  perceptions  and  conceptions,  to  the 
most  indefatigable  industry  and  perseverance,  and  the  most  ac- 
curate knowledge  of  the  phenomena  of  nature  as  they  affect  his 
peculiar  labors,  this  man  joined  an  utter  want  of  the  ‘ gift  of  gab 
he  could  no  more  explain  to  others  what  he  meant  to  do  and 
how  he  meant  to  do  it,  than  he  could  fly,  and  therefore  the 
members  of  the  House  of  Commons,  after  saying,  4 There  is  a 
rock  to  be  excavated  to  a depth  of  more  than  sixty  feet,  there 
are  embankments  to  be  made  nearly  to  the  same  height,  there, 
is  a swamp  of  five  miles  in  length  to  be  traversed,  in  which  if 
you  drop  an  iron  rod  it  sinks  and  disappears  ; how  will  you  do 
all  this  ?’  and  receiving  no  answer  but  a broad  Northumbrian, 
‘ I can’t  tell  you  how  I’ll  do  it,  but  I can  tell  you  I will  do  it,’ 
dismissed  Stephenson  as  a visionary.  Having  prevailed  upon  a 
company  of  Liverpool  gentlemen  to  be  less  incredulous,  and 
having  raised  funds  for  his  great  undertaking,  in  December  of 
1826  the  first  spade  was  struck  into  the  ground.  And  now  I 
will  give  you  an  account  of  my  yesterday’s  excursion.  A party 
of  sixteen  persons  was  ushered  into  a large  court-yard,  where, 
under  cover,  stood  several  carriages  of  a peculiar  construction, 
one  of  which  was  prepared  for  our  reception.  It  was  a long- 
bodied vehicle  with  seats  placed  across  it  back  to  back  ; the  one 
we  were  in  had  six  of  these  benches,  and  was  a sort  of  uncov- 
ered char  a banc.  The  wheels  were  placed  upon  two  iron  bands, 
which  formed  the  road,  and  to  which  they  are  fitted,  being  so 
constructed  as  to  slide  along  without  any  danger  of  hitching  or 
becoming  displaced,  on  the  same  principle  as  a thing  sliding  on 
a concave  groove.  The  carriage  was  set  in  motion  by  a mere 
push,  and,  having  received  this  impetus,  rolled  with  us  down  an 
inclined  plane  into  a tunnel,  which  forms  the  entrance  to  the  rail- 
road. This  tunnel  is  four  hundred  yards  long  (I  believe),  and  will 
1* 


IO 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


be  lighted  by  gas.  At  the  end  of  it  we  emerged  from  darkness, 
and,  the  ground  becoming  level,  we  stopped.  There  is  another 
tunnel  parallel  with  this,  only  much  wider  and  longer,  for  it  ex- 
tends from  the  place  we  had  now  reached,  and  where  the  steam 
carriages  start,  and  which  is  quite  out  of  Liverpool,  the  whole  way 
under  the  town,  to  the  docks.  This  tunnel  is  for  wagons  and 
other  heavy  carriages ; and  as  the  engines  which  are  to  draw 
the  trains  along  the  railroad  do  not  enter  these  tunnels,  there  is 
a large  building  at  this  entrance  which  is  to  be  inhabited  by 
steam  engines  of  a stationary  turn  of  mind,  and  different  con- 
stitution from  the  traveling  ones,  which  are  to  propel  the  trains 
through  the  tunnels  to  the  terminus  in  the  town,  without  going 
out  of  their  houses  themselves.  The  length  of  the  tunnel  par- 
allel to  the  one  we  passed  through  is  (I  believe)  two  thousand 
two  hundred  yards.  I wonder  if  you  are  understanding  one 
word  I am  saying  all  this  while  ! We  were  introduced  to  the 
little  engine  which  was  to  drag  us  along  the  rails.  She  (for 
they  make  these  curious  little  fire  horses  all  mares)  consisted 
of  a boiler,  a stove,  a platform,  a bench,  and  behind  the  bench 
a barrel  containing  enough  water  to  prevent  her  being  thirsty 
for  fifteen  miles, — the  whole  machine  not  bigger  than  a common 
fire  engine.  She  goes  upon  two  wheels,  which  are  her  feet,  and 
are  moved  by  bright  steel  legs  called  pistons  ; these  are  pro- 
pelled by  steam,  and  in  proportion  as  more  steam  is  applied  to 
the  upper  extremities  (the  hip-joints,  I suppose)  of  these  pis- 
tons, the  faster  they  move  the  wheels  ; and  when  it  is  desira- 
ble to  diminish  the  speed,  the  steam,  which  unless  suffered  to 
escape  would  burst  the  boiler,  evaporates  through  a safety 
valve  into  the  air.  The  reins,  bit,  and  bridle  of  this  wonderful 
beast,  is  a small  steel  handle,  which  applies  or  withdraws  the 
steam  from  its  legs  or  pistons,  so  that  a child  might  manage  it. 

“ The  coals,  which  are  its  oats,  were  under  the  bench,  and 
there  was  a small  glass  tube  affixed  to  the  boiler,  with  water  in 
it,  which  indicates  by  its  fullness  or  emptiness  when  the  creature 
wants  water,  which  is  immediately  conveyed  to  it  from  its  reser- 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


1 1 


voirs.  There  is  a chimney  to  the  stove,  but  as  they  burn  coke 
there  is  none  of  the  dreadful  black  smoke  which  accompanies 
the  progress  of  a steam  vessel.  This  snorting  little  animal, 
which  I felt  rather  inclined  to  pat,  was  then  harnessed  to  our 
carriage,  and  Mr.  Stephenson  having  taken  me  on  the  bench  of 
the  engine  with  him,  we  started  at  about  ten  miles  an  hour. 
The  steam  horse  being  ill  adapted  for  going  up  and  down  hill, 
the  road  was  kept  at  a certain  level,  and  appeared  sometimes  to 
sink  below  the  surface  of  the  earth  and  sometimes  to  rise  above 
it.  Almost  at  starting  it  was  cut  through  the  solid  rock,  which 
formed  a wall  on  either  side  of  it,  about  sixty  feet  high.  You 
can’t  imagine  how  strange  it  seemed  to  be  journeying  on  thus, 
without  any  visible  cause  of  progress  other  than  the  magical 
machine,  with  its  flying  white  breath  and  rhythmical,  unvarying 
pace,  between  these  rocky  walls,  which  are  already  clothed  with 
moss  and  ferns  and  grasses ; and  when  I reflected  that  these 
great  masses  of  stone  had  been  cut  asunder  to  allow  our  pas- 
sage thus  far  below  the  surface  of  the  earth,  I felt  as  if  no  fairy 
tale  was  ever  half  so  wonderful  as  what  I saw.  Bridges  were 
thrown  from  side  to  side  across  the  top  of  these  cliffs,  and  the 
people  looking  down  upon  us  from  them  seemed  like  pigmies 
standing  in  the  sky.  I must  be  more  concise,  though,  or  I shall 
want  room.  We  were  to  go  only  fifteen  miles,  that  distance 
being  sufficient  to  show  the  speed  of  the  engine,  and  to  take  us 
to  the  most  beautiful  and  wonderful  object  on  the  road.  After 
proceeding  through  this  rocky  defile,  we  presently  found  our- 
selves raised  upon  embankments  ten  or  twelve  feet  high  ; we 
then  came  to  a moss,  or  swamp,  of  considerable  extent,  on  which 
no  human  foot  could  tread  without  sinking,  and  yet  it  bore  the 
road  which  bore  us.  This  had  been  the  great  stumbling-block 
in  the  minds  of  the  committee  of  the  House  of  Commons  ; but 
Mr.  Stephenson  has  succeeded  in  overcoming  it.  A foundation 
of  hurdles,  or,  as  he  called  it,  basket-work,  was  thrown  over  the 
morass,  and  the  interstices  were  filled  with  moss  and  other  elas- 
tic matter. 


12 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


Upon  this  the  clay  and  soil  were  laid  down,  and  the  road 
does  float,  for  we  passed  over  it  at  the  rate  of  five  and  twenty 
miles  an  hour,  and  saw  the  stagnant  swamp  water  trembling  on 
the  surface  of  the  soil  on  either  side  of  us.  I hope  you  under- 
stand me.  The  embankment  had  gradually  been  rising  higher 
and  higher,  and  in  one  place,  where  the  soil  was  not  settled 
enough  to  form  banks,  Stephenson  had  constructed  artificial 
ones  of  woodwork,  over  which  the  mounds  of  earth  were  heaped, 
for  he  said  that  though  the  wood-work  would  rot,  before  it  did 
so  the  banks  of  earth  which  covered  it  would  have  been  suffi- 
ciently consolidated  to  support  the  road.  We  had  now  come 
fifteen  miles,  and  stopped  where  the  road  traversed  a wide  and 
deep  valley.  Stephenson  made  me  alight  and  led  me  down  to 
the  bottom  of  this  ravine,  over  which,  in  order  to  keep  his  road 
level,  he  has  thrown  a magnificent  viaduct  of  nine  arches,  the 
middle  one  of  which  is  seventy  feet  high,  through  which  we  saw 
the  whole  of  this  beautiful  little  valley.  It  was  lovely  and  won- 
derful beyond-all  words.  He  here  told  me  many  curious  things 
respecting  this  ravine ; how  he  believed  the  Mersey  had  once 
rolled  through  it ; how  the  soil  had  proved  so  unfavorable  for 
the  foundation  of  his  bridge  that  it  was  built  upon  piles,  which 
had  been  driven  into  the  earth  to  an  enormous  depth  ; how  while 
digging  for  a foundation  he  had  come  to  a tree  bedded  in  the 
earth,  fourteen  feet  below  the  surface  of  the  ground  ; how  tides 
are  caused,  and  how  another  flood  might  be  caused  ; all  of  which 
I have  remembered  and  noted  down  at  much  greater  length 
than  I can  enter  upon  it  here.  He  explained  to  me  the  whole 
construction  of  the  steam-engine,  and  said  he  could  soon  make 
a famous  engineer  of  me,  which,  considering  the  wonderful 
things  he  has  achieved,  I dare  not  say  is  impossible.  His  way 
of  explaining  himself  is  peculiar,  but  very  striking,  and  I under- 
stood, without  difficulty,  all  that  he  said  to  me.  We  then  re- 
joined the  rest  of  the  party,  and  the  engine  having  received  its 
supply  of  water,  the  carriage  was  placed  behind  it,  for  it  cannot 
turn,  and  was  set  off  at  its  utmost  speed,  thirty-five  miles  an 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


13 


hour,  swifter  than  a bird  flies  (for  they  tried  the  experiment 
with  a snipe).  You  cannot  conceive  what  that  sensation  of  cut- 
ting the  air  was  ; the  motion  is  as  smooth  as  possible,  too.  1 
could  either  have  read  or  written  ; and  as  it  was,  I stood  up, 
and  with  my  bonnet  off  ‘ drank  the  air  before  me.’  The  wind, 
which  was  strong,  or  perhaps  the  force  of  our  own  thrusting 
against  it,  absolutely  weighed  my  eyelids  down. 

“ When  I closed  my  eyes  this  sensation  of  flying  was  quite 
delightful,  and  strange  beyond  description  ; yet  strange  as  it 
was,  I had  a perfect  sense  of  security,  and  not  the  slightest  fear. 
At  one  time,  to  exhibit  the  power  of  the  engine,  having  met 
another  steam-carriage  which  was  unsupplied  with  water,  Mr. 
Stephenson  caused  it  to  be  fastened  in  front  of  ours ; moreover, 
a wagon  laden  with  timber  was  also  chained  to  us,  and  thus 
propelling  the  idle  steam-engine,  and  dragging  the  loaded  wagon 
which  was  beside  it,  and  our  own  carriage  full  of  people  behind, 
this  brave  little  she-dragon  of  ours  flew  on.  Farther  on  she 
met  three  carts,  which,  being  fastened  in  front  of  her,  she  pushed 
on  before  her  without  the  slightest  delay  or  difficulty ; when  I 
add  that  this  pretty  little  creature  can  run  with  equal  facility  either 
backwards  or  forwards,  I believe  I have  given  you  an  account  of 
all  her  capacities.  Now  for  a word  or  two  about  the  master  of 
all  these  marvels,  with  whom  I am  most  horribly  in  love.  He  is 
a man  from  fifty  to  fifty-five  years  of  age  ; his  face  is  fine,  though 
careworn,  and  bears  an  expression  of  deep  thoughtfulness  ; his 
mode  of  explaining  his  ideas  is  peculiar  and  very  original,  strik- 
ing, and  forcible  ; and  although  his  accent  indicates  strongly  his 
north  country  birth,  his  language  has  not  the  slightest  touch  of 
vulgarity  or  coarseness.  He  has  certainly  turned  my  head.  Four 
years  have  sufficed  to  bring  this  great  undertaking  to  an  end. 
The  railroad  will  be  opened  upon  the  fifteenth  of  next  month. 
The  Duke  of  Wellington  is  coming  down  to  be  present  on  the 
occasion,  and,  I suppose,  what  with  the  thousands  of  spectators 
and  the  novelty  of  the  spectacle,  there  will  never  have  been  a 
scene  of  more  striking  interest.  The  whole  cost  of  the  work  (in- 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


eluding  the  engines  and  carriages)  will  have  been  eight  hundred 
and  thirty  thousand  pounds  ; and  it  is  already  worth  double  that 
sum.  The  directors  have  kindly  offered  us  three  places  for  the 
opening,  which  is  a great  favor,  for  people  are  bidding  almost 
anything  for  a place,  I understand.” 

Even  while  Miss  Kemble  was  writing  this  letter, 
certainly  before  it  had  reached  her  correspondent, 
the  official  programme  of  that  opening  to  which  she 
was  so  eagerly  looking  forward  was  thus  referred  to 
in  the  Liverpool  papers : 

“ The  day  of  opening  still  remains  fixed  for  Wednesday  the 
fifteenth  instant.  The  company  by  whom  the  ceremony  is  to  be 
performed,  is  expected  to  amount  to  eight  or  nine  hundred  per- 
sons, including  the  Duke  of  Wellington  and  several  others  of  the 
nobility.  They  will  leave  Liverpool  at  an  early  hour  in  the  fore- 
noon, probably  ten  o’clock,  in  carriages  drawn  by  eight  or  nine 
engines,  including  the  new  engine  of  Messrs.  Braithwaite  and 
Ericsson,  if  it  be  ready  in  time.  The  other  engines  will  be  those 
constructed  by  Mr.  Stephenson,  and  each  of  them  will  draw  about 
a hundred  persons.  On  their  arrival  at  Manchester,  the  com- 
pany will  enter  the  upper  stories  of  the  warehouses  by  means  of 
a spacious  outside  wooden  staircase,  which  is  in  course  of  erec- 
tion for  the  purpose  by  Mr.  Bellhouse.  The  upper  story  of  the 
range  of  warehouses  is  divided  into  five  apartments,  each  meas- 
uring sixty-six  feet  by  fifty  -six.  In  four  of  these  a number  of 
tables  (which  Mr.  Bellhouse  is  also  preparing)  will  be  placed,  and 
the  company  will  partake  of  a splendid  cold  collation  which  is  to 
be  provided  by  Mr.  Lynn,  of  the  Waterloo  Hotel,  Liverpool.  A 
large  apartment  at  the  east  end  of  the  warehouses  will  be  re- 
served as  a withdrawing  room  for  the  ladies,  and  is  partitioned 
off  for  that  purpose.  After  partaking  of  the  hospitality  of  the 
directors,  the  company  will  return  to  Liverpool  in  the  same  order 
in  which  they  arrive.  We  understand  that  each  shareholder  in 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM . 


15 


the  railway  will  be  entitled  to  a seat  (transferable)  in  one  of  the 
carriages, on  this  interesting  and  important  occasion.  It  maybe 
proper  to  state,  for  the  information  of  the  public,  that  no  one  will 
be  permitted  to  go  upon  the  railway  between  Ordsall  lane  and 
the  warehouses,  and  parties  of  the  military  and  police  will  be 
placed  to  preserve  order,  and  prevent  intrusion.  Beyond  Ord- 
sall lane,  however,  the  public  will  be  freely  admitted  to  view  the 
procession  as  it  passes  : and  no  restriction  will  be  laid  upon  them 
farther  than  may  be  requisite  to  prevent  them  from  approaching 
too  close  to  the  rails,  lest  accidents  should  occur.  By  extending 
themselves  along  either  side  of  the  road  towards  Eccles  any 
number  of  people,  however  great,  may  be  easily  accommodated/' 

It  only  remained  to  successfully  carry  out  on  the 
the  15th  the  programme  thus  carefully  laid  down. 
Of  their  ability  so  to  do  the  directors  of  the  company 
probably  entertained  little  doubt.  Yet  there  were 
circumstances  connected  with  the  then  condition  of 
public  affairs  which  might  well  have  occasioned  them 
some  uneasiness.  Never  in  modern  times  had  Eng- 
land passed  through  a sadder  or  more  anxious  period 
than  that  during  which  the  Manchester  & Liver- 
pool road  was  built.  The  great  reaction  which  nat- 
urally followed  the  close  of  the  long  Napoleonic  wars 
was  coming  to  a close,  and  the  patience  of  all,  and  the 
endurance  of  many,  were  thoroughly  worn  out.  The 
suffering  of  the  poorer  classes,  especially  in  the  manu- 
facturing districts,  was  extremely  severe,  and  the  con- 
sequent popular  discontent  so  great  that  even  the 
semblance  of  order  was  with  difficulty  preserved. 
Half  the  counties  in  England  were  nightly  illum- 
ined by  incendiary  fires.  A fierce  political  agitation 


:6 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


was  also  raging.  The  Duke  of  Wellington  was  prime 
minister.  The  cry  for  parliamentary  reform  was 
loud,  and  against  any  compliance  with  that  cry  the 
prime  minister  had  set  his  face  like  a flint.  From 
being  the  most  popular  man  in  the  kingdom,  he  had 
become  the  most  unpopular.  He  lived  in  constant 
danger  of  being  hustled  wherever  he  showed  himself, 
even  if  he  escaped  mobbing.  And  now  this  man, 
hard,  ungracious  in  manner,  unyielding  as  iron,  the 
object  of  intense  popular  odium,  was  coming  down 
into  the  very  hot-bed  of  suffering  and  agitation  to  take 
the  prominent  part,— to  be  the  guest  of  honor  upon 
an  occasion  which  was  sure  to  call  out  the  entire 
mass  of  the  population.  Whether  the  directors  of 
the  company  realized  it  or  no,  the  experiment  was  a 
perilous  one.  In  spite  of  every  precaution  the  day 
might  not  improbably  end  in  a riot, — possibly  in  a 
revolution.  At  last  it  came,  and  the  contemporane- 
ous reporter  has  left  of  it  the  following  account : 

“ The  town  itself  [Liverpool]  was  never  so  full  of  strangers  ; 
they  poured  in  during  the  last  and  the  beginning  of  the  present 
week  from  almost  all  parts  of  the  three  kingdoms,  and  we  be- 
lieve that  through  Chester  alone,  which  is  by  no  means  a prin- 
cipal road  to  Liverpool,  four  hundred  extra  passengers  were 
forwarded  on  Tuesday.  All  the  inns  in  the  town  were  crowded 
to  overflowing,  and  carriages  stood  in  the  streets  at  night,  for 
want  of  room  in  the  stable  yards. 

“ On  the  morning  of  Wednesday  the  population  of  the  town 
and  of  the  country  began  very  early  to  assemble  near  the  rail- 
way. The  weather  was  favorable,  and  the  Company’s  station 
at  the  boundary  of  the  town  was  the  rendezvous  of  the  nobility 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


17 


and  gentry  who  attended,  to  form  the  procession  at  Manchester. 
Never  was  there  such  an  assemblage  of  rank,  wealth,  beauty, 
and  fashion  in  this  neighborhood.  From  before  nine  o’clock 
until  ten  the  entrance  in  Crown  street  was  thronged  by  the  splen- 
did equipages  from  which  the  company  was  alighting,  and  the 
area  in  which  the  railway  carriages  were  placed  was  gradually 
filling  with  gay  groups  eagerly  searching  for  their  respective 
places,  as  indicated  by  numbers  corresponding  with  those  on 
their  tickets.  The  large  and  elegant  car  constructed  for  the  no- 
bility, and  the  accompanying  cars  for  the  Directors  and  the 
musicians  were  seen  through  the  lesser  tunnel,  where  persons 
moving  about  at  the  far  end  appeared  as  diminutive  as  if  viewed 
through  a concave  glass.  The  effect  was  singular  and  striking. 
In  a short  time  all  those  cars  were  brought  along  the  tunnel  into 
the  yard  which  then  contained  all  the  carriages,  which  were  to 
be  attached  to  the  eight  locomotive  engines  which  were  in  read- 
iness beyond  the  tunnel  in  the  g'reat  excavation  at  Edge-hill. 
By  this  time  the  area  presented  a beautiful  spectacle,  thirty- 
three  carriages  being  filled  by  elegantly  dressed  persons,  each 
train  of  carriages  being  distinguished  by  silk  flags  of  different 
colors  ; the  band  of  the  fourth  King’s  Own  Regiment,  stationed 
in  the  adjoining  area,  playing  military  airs,  the  Wellington  Har- 
monic Band,  in  a Grecian  car  for  the  procession,  performing 
many  beautiful  miscellaneous  pieces  ; and  a third  band  occupy- 
ing a stage  above  Mr.  Harding’s  Grand  Stand,  at  William  the 
Fourth’s  Hotel,  spiritedly  adding  to  the  liveliness  of  the  hour 
whenever  the  other  bands  ceased. 

“ A few  minutes  before  ten,  the  discharge  of  a gun  and  the 
cheers  of  the  assembly  announced  the  arrival  of  the  Duke  of 
Wellington,  who  entered  the  area  with  the  Marquis  arid  Mar- 
chioness of  Salisbury  and  a number  of  friends,  the  band  playing 
“See  the  conquering  Hero  comes.”  He  returned  the  congratu- 
lations of  the  company,  and  in  a few  moments  the  grand  car, 
which  he  and  the  nobility  and  the  principal  gentry  occupied,  and 
the  cars  attached  to  it,  were  permitted  to  proceed  ; we  say  per- 


i8 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


mitted,  because  no  applied  power,  except  a slight  impulse  at 
first  is  requisite  to  propel  carriages  along  the  tunnel,  the  slope 
being  just  sufficient  to  call  into  effect  the  principle  of  gravitation. 
The  tunnel  was  lighted  with  gas,  and  the  motion  in  passing 
through  it  must  have  been  as  pleasing  as  it  was  novel  to  all  the 
party.  On  arriving  at  the  engine  station,  the  cars  were  attached 
to  the  Northumbrian , locomotive  engine,  on  the  southern  of  the 
two  lines  of  rail ; and  immediately  the  other  trains  of  carriages 
started  through  the  tunnel  and  were  attached  to  their  respective 
engines  on  the  northern  of  the  lines. 

“ We  had  the  good  fortune  to  have  a place  in  the  first  train 
after  the  grand  cars,  which  train,  drawn  by  the  Phoenix,  consisted 
of  three  open  and  two  close  carriages,  each  carrying  twenty-six 
ladies  and  gentlemen.  The  lofty  banks  of  the  engine  station 
were  crowded  with  thousands  of  spectators,  whose  enthusiastic 
cheering  seemed  to  rend  the  air.  From  this  point  to  Wavertree- 
lane,  while  the  procession  was  forming,  the  grand  cars  passed 
and  repassed  the  other  trains  of  carriages  several  times,  running 
as  they  did  in  the  same  direction  on  the  two  parallel  tracks, 
which  gave  the  assembled  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  the 
opportunity  of  seeing  distinctly  the  illustrious  strangers,  whose 
presence  gave  extraordinary  interest  to  the  scene.  Some  soldiers 
of  the  4th  Regiment  assisted  the  railway  police  in  keeping  the 
way  clear  and  preserving  order,  and  they  discharged  their  duty  in 
a very  proper  manner.  A few  minutes  before  eleven  all  was  ready 
for  the  journey,  and  certainly  a journey  upon  a railway  is  one  of 
the  most  delightful  that  can  be  imagined.  Our  first  thoughts  it 
might  be  supposed,  from  the  road  being  so  level,  were  that  it  must 
be  monotonous  and  uninteresting.  It  is  precisely  the  contrary  ; for 
as  the  road  does  not  rise  and  fall  like  the  ground  over  which  we 
pass,  but  proceeds  nearly  at  a level,  whether  the  land  be  high  or 
low,  we  are  at  one  moment  drawn  through  a hill,  and  find  our- 
selves seventy  feet  below  the  surface,  in  an  Alpine  chasm,  and 
at  another  we  are  as  many  feet  above  the  green  fields,  traversing 
a raised  path,  from  which  we  look  down  upon  the  roofs  of  frame 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


19 


houses,  and  see  the  distant  hills  and  woods.  These  variations 
give  an  interest  to  such  a journey  which  cannot  be  appreciated 
until  they  are  witnessed.  The  signal  gun  being  fired,  we  started 
in  beautiful  style,  amidst  the  deafening  plaudits  of  the  well- 
dressed  people  who  thronged  the  numerous  booths,  and  all  the 
walls  and  eminences  on  both  sides  the  line.  Our  speed  was 
gradually  increased  till,  entering  the  Olive  Mountain  excavation, 
we  rushed  into  the  awful  chasm  at  the  rate  of  twenty-four  miles 
an  hour.  The  banks,  the  bridges  over  our  heads,  and  the  rude 
projecting  corners  along  the  sides,  were  covered  with  masses  of 
human  beings  past  whom  we  glided  as  if  upon  the  wings  of  the 
wind.  We  soon  came  into  the  open  country  of  Broad  Green, 
having  fine  views  of  Huyton  and  Prescot  on  the  left,  and  the  hilly 
grounds  of  Cheshire  on  the  right.  Vehicles  of  every  description 
stood  in  the  fields  on  both  sides,  and  thousands  of  spectators 
still  lined  the  margin  of  the  road  ; some  horses  seemed  alarmed, 
but  after  trotting  with  their  carriages  to  the  farther  hedges,  they 
stood  still  as  if  their  fears  had  subsided.  After  passing  Whiston, 
sometimes  going  slowly,  sometimes  swiftly,  we  observed  that  a 
vista  formed  by  several  bridges  crossing  the  road  gave  a pleasing 
effect  to  the  view.  Under  Rainhill  Bridge,  which,  like  all  the 
others,  was  crowded  with  spectators,  the  Duke’s  car  stopped  until 
we  passed,  and  on  this,  as  on  similar  occasions,  we  had  excellent 
opportunities-of  seeing  the  whole  of  the  noble  party,  distinguish- 
ing the  Marquis  and  Marchioness  of  Salisbury,  the  Earl  and 
Countess  of  Wilton,  Lord  Stanley  and  others,  in  the  fore  part  of 
the  car  ; along  side  of  the  latter  part  was  Mr.  Huskisson,  stand- 
ing with  his  face  always  toward  us  ; and  further  behind  was  Lord 
Hill,  and  others,  among  whom  the  Mayor  of  Liverpool  took  his 
station.  At  this  place  Mr.  Bretherton  had  a large  party  of  friends 
in  a field,  overlooking  the  road.  As  we  approached  the  Sutton  in- 
clined plane  the  Duke’s  car  passed  us  again  at  a most  rapid  rate 
— it  appeared  rapid  even  to  us  who  were  travelling  then  at,  prob- 
ably, fifteen  miles  an  hour.  We  had  a fine  view  of  Billings  hill 
from  this  neighborhood,  and  of  a thousand  various  colored  fields, 


20 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


A grand  stand  was  here  erected,  beautifully  decorated,  and 
crowded  with  ladies  and  gentlemen  from  St.  Helen’s  and  the 
neighborhood.  Entering  upon  Parr  Moss  we  had  a good  view 
of  Newton  Race  Course  and  the  stands,  and  at  this  time  the 
Duke  was  far  ahead  of  us  ; the  grand  cars  appeared  actually  of 
diminutive  dimensions,  and  in  a short  time  we  saw  them  gliding 
beautifully  over  the  Sankey  Viaduct,  from  which  a scene  truly 
magnificent  lay  before  us. 

“ The  fields  below  us  were  occupied  by  thousands  who  cheer- 
ed us  as  we  passed  over  the  stupendous  edifice  ; carriages  filled  the 
narrow  lanes,  and  vessels  in  the  water  had  been  detained  in  order 
that  their  crews  might  gaze  up  at  the  gorgeous  pageant  passing 
far  above  their  mast  heads.  Here  again  was  a grand  stand,  and 
here  again  enthusiastic  plaudits  almost  deafened  us.  Shortly, 
we  passed  the  borough  of  Newton,  crossing  a fine  bridge  over 
the  Warrington  road,  and  reached  Parkside,  seventeen  miles 
from  Liverpool,  in  about  four  minutes  under  the  hour.  At  this 
place  the  engines  were  ranged  under  different  watering  stations 
to  receive  fresh  water,  the  whole  extending  along  nearly  a half  a 
mile  of  road.  Our  train  and  two  others  passed  the  Duke’s  car, 
and  we  in  the  first  train  had  had  our  engine  supplied  with  water, 
and  were  ready  to  start,  some  time  before  we  were  aware  of  the 
melancholy  cause  of  our  apparently  great  delay.  We  had,  most 
of  us,  alighted,  and  were  walking  about,  congratulating  each 
other  generally,  and  the  ladies  particularly,  on  the  truly  delight- 
ful treat  we  were  enjoying,  all  hearts  bounding  with  joyous  ex- 
citement, and  every  tongue  eloquent  in  the  praise  of  the  gigan- 
tic work  now  completed,  and  the  advantages  and  pleasures  it.  af- 
forded. A murmur  and  an  agitation  at  a little  distance  beto- 
kened something  alarming  and  we  too  soon  learned  the  nature  of 
that  lamentable  event,  which  we  cannot  record  without  the  most 
agonized  feelings.  On  inquiring,  we  learnt  the  dreadful  par- 
ticulars. After  three  of  the  engines  with  their  trains  had  passed 
the  Duke’s  carriage,  although  the  others  had  to  follow,  the  com- 
pany began  to  alight  from  all  the  carriages  which  had  arrived. 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


21 


The  Duke  of  Wellington  and  Mr.  Huskisson  had  just  shaken 
hands,  and  Mr.  Huskisson,  Prince  Esterhazy,  Mr.  Birch,  Mr.  H. 
Earle,  Mr.  William  Holmes,  M.  P.  and  others  were  standing  in 
the  road,  when  the  other  carriages  were  approaching.  An  alarm 
being  given,  most  of  the  gentlemen  sprang  into  the  carriage,  but 
Mr.  Huskisson  seemed  flurried,  and  from  some  cause,  not  clearly 
ascertained,  he  fell  under  the  engine  of  the  approaching  carriages, 
the  wheel  of  which  shattered  his  leg  in  the  most  dreadful  man- 
ner. On  being  raised  from  the  ground  by  the  Earl  of  Wilton, 
Mr.  Holmes,  and  other  gentlemen,  his  only  exclamations  were ; 
— “ Where  is  Mrs.  Huskisson  ? I have  met  my  death.  God 
forgive  me.”  Immediately  after  he  swooned.  Dr.  Brandreth, 
and  Dr.  Southey,  of  London,  immediately  applied  bandages  to 
the  limb.  In  a short  time  the  engine  was  detached  from  the 
Duke’s  carriage,  and  the  musician’s  car  being  prepared  for  the 
purpose,  the  Right  Honorable  gentleman  was  placed  in  it,  ac- 
companied by  his  afflicted  lady,  with  Doctor  Brandreth,  Dr. 
Southey,  Earl  of  Wilton,  and  Mr.  Stephenson,  who  set  off  in  the 
direction  of  Manchester. 

“ The  whole  of  the  procession  remained  at  least  another  hour 
uncertain  what  course  to  adopt.  A consultation  was  held  on  the 
open  part  of  the  road,  and  the  Duke  of  Wellington  was  soon 
surrounded  by  the  Directors,  and  a mournful  group  of  gentle- 
men. At  first  it  was  thought  advisable  to  return  to  Liverpool, 
merely  dispatching  one  engine  and  a set  of  carriages,  to  convey 
home  Lady  Wilton,  and  others  who  did  not  wish  to  return  to 
Liverpool.  The  Duke  of  Wellington  and  Sir  Robert  Peel  seemed 
to  favor  this  course  ; others  thought  it  best  to  proceed  as  origi- 
nally intended  : but  no  decision  was  made  till  the  Boroughreeve 
of  Manchester  stated,  that  if  the  procession  did  not  reach  Man- 
chester, where  an  unprecedented  concourse  of  people  would  be 
assembled,  and  would  wait  for  it,  he  should  be  fearful  of  the 
consequences  to  the  peace  of  the  town.  This  turned  the  scale 
and  his  Grace  then  proposed  that  the  whole  party  should  pro- 
ceed, and  return  as  soon  as  possible,  all  festivity  at  Manchester 


22 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


being  avoided.  The  PhoeniXy  with  its  train,  was  then  attached 
to  the  North  Star  and  its  train,  and  from  the  two  united  a long 
chain  was  affixed  to  his  Grace’s  car,  and  although  it  was  on  the 
other  line  of  rail,  it  was  found  to  draw  the  whole  along  exceed- 
ingly well.  About  half-past  one,  we  resumed  our  journey  ; and 
we  should  here  mention  that  the  Wigan  Branch  Railway  Com- 
pany had  erected  near  Parkside  bridge,  a grand  stand,  which 
they  and  their  friends  occupied,  and  from  which  they  enthusi- 
astically cheered  the  procession.  On  reaching  the  twentieth 
mile  post  we  had  a beautiful  view  of  Rivington  Pike,  and  Black- 
stone  Edge,  and  at  the  twenty-first  the  smoke  of  Manchester 
appeared  to  be  directly  at  the  termination  of  our  view.  Groups 
of  people  continued  to  cheer  us,  but  we  could  not  reply  ; our 
enjoyment  was  over.  Tyldesley  Church,  and  a vast  region  of 
smiling  fields  here  met  the  eye,  as  we  traversed  the  flat  surface 
of  Chat  Moss,  in  the  midst  of  which  a vast  crowd  was  assembled 
to  greet  us  with  their  plaudits  ; and  from  the  twenty-fourth  mile 
post  we  began  to  find  ourselves  flanked  on  both  sides  by  spec- 
tators extending  in  a continuous  and  thickening  body  all  the  way 
to  Manchester.  At  the  twenty-fifth  mile  post  we  met  Mr.  Ste- 
phenson returning  with  the  Northumbrian  engine.  In  answer 
to  innumerable  and  eager  inquiries,  Mr.  Stephenson  said  he  had 
left  Mr.  Huskisson  at  the  house  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Blackburn,  Vicar 
of  Eccles,  and  had  then  proceeded  to  Manchester,  whence  he 
brought  back  medical  assistance,  and  that  the  surgeons,  after 
seeing  Mr.  Huskisson,  had  expressed  a hope  that  there  was  no 
danger.  Mr.  Stephenson’s  speed  had  been  at  the  rate  of  thirty- 
four  miles  an  hour  during  this  painful  errand.  The  engine  being 
then  again  attached  to  the  Duke’s  car,  the  procession  dashed 
forward,  passing  countless  thousands  of  people  upon  house  tops, 
booths,  high  ground,  bridges,  etc.,  and  our  readers  must  im- 
agine, for  we  cannot  describe,  such  a movement  through  an 
avenue  of  living  beings,  and  extending  six  miles  in  length.  Upon 
one  bridge  a tri-colored  flag  was  displayed  ; near  another  the 
motto  of  “ Vote  by  ballot  ” was  seen  ; in  a field  near  Eccles,  a 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


23 


poor  and  wretchedly-dressed  man  had  his  loom  close  to  the 
roadside,  and  was  weaving  with  all  his  might ; cries  of  “ No 
Corn  Laws,”  were  occasionally  heard,  and  for  about  two  miles 
the  cheerings  of  the  crowd  were  interspersed  with  a continual 
hissing  and  hooting  from  the  minority.  On  approaching  the 
bridge  which  crosses  the  Irwell,  the  59th  regiment  was  drawn 
up,  flanking  the  road  on  each  side,  and  presenting  arms  as  his 
Grace  passed  along.  We  reached  the  warehouses  at  a quarter 
before  three,  and  those  who  alighted  were  shown  into  the  large 
upper  rooms  where  a most  elegant,  cold  collation  had  been  pre- 
pared by  Mr.  Lynn,  for  more  than  one  thousand  persons.  The 
greater  portion  of  the  company,  as  the  carriages  continued  to 
arrive,  visited  the  rooms  and  partook  in  silence  of  some  refresh- 
ment. They  then  returned  to  their  carriages  which  had  been 
properly  placed  for  returning.  His  Grace  and  the  principal 
party  did  not  alight ; but  he  went  through  a most  fatiguing 
office  for  more  than  an  hour  and  a half,  in  shaking  hands  with 
thousands  of  people,  to  whom  he  stooped  over  the  hand  rail  of 
the  carriage,  and  who  seemed  insatiable  in  their  desire  to  join 
hands  with  him.  Many  women  brought  their  children  to  him, 
lifting  them  up  that  he  might  bless  them,  which  he  did,  and 
during  the  whole  time  he  had  scarcely  a minute’s  respite.  At 
half  past  four  the  Duke’s  car  began  to  move  away  for  Liverpool. 

“ They  would  have  been  detained  a little  longer,  in  order 
that  three  of  the  engines,  which  had  been  to  Eccles  for  water, 
might  have  dropped  into  the  rear  to  take  their  places  ; but  Mr. 
Lavender  represented  that  the  crowd  was  so  thickening  in  upon 
all  sides,  and  becoming  so  clamorous  for  admission  into  the  area, 
that  he  would  not  answer  for  the  peace  of  the  town,  if  further 
delay  took  place.  The  three  engines  were  on  the  same  line  of 
rail  as  the  Duke,  and  they  could  not  cross  to  the  other  line  with- 
out getting  to  a turning  place,  and  as  the  Duke  could  not  be  de- 
layed on  account  of  his  keeping  the  crowd  together,  there  was 
no  alternative  but  to  send  the  engines  forward.  One  of  the 
other  engines  was  then  attached  to  our  train,  and  we  followed 


24 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


the  Duke  rapidly,  while  the  six  trains  behind  had  only  three  en- 
gines left  to  bring  them  back.  Of  course,  we  kept  pace  with 
the  Duke,  who  stopped  at  Eccles  to  inquire  after  Mr.  Huskis- 
son.  The  answer  received  was  that  there  was  now  no  hope  of 
his  life  being  saved  ; and  this  intelligence  plunged  the  whole 
party  into  still  deeper  distress.  We  proceeded  without  meeting 
any  fresh  incident,  until  we  passed  Prescot,  where  we  found 
two  of  the  three  engines  at  the  6|  mile  post,  where  a turning 
had  been  effected,  but  the  third  had  gone  on  to  Liverpool ; we 
then  detached  the  one  we  had  borrowed,  and  the  three  set  out 
to  meet  the  six  remaining  trains  of  carriages.  Our  carriages 
were  then  connected  with  the  grand  cars,  the  engine  of  which 
now  drew  the  whole  number  of  nine  carriages,  containing  nearly 
three  hundred  persons,  at  a very  smart  rate.  We  were  now  get- 
ting into  vast  crowds  of  people,  most  of  them  ignorant  of  the 
dreadful  event  which  had  taken  place,  and  all  of  them  giving  us 
enthusiastic  cheers  which  we  could  not  return. 

“ At  Roby,  his  Grace  and  the  Childwalls  alighted  and  pro- 
ceeded home  ; our  carriages  then  moved  forward  to  Liverpool, 
where  we  arrived  about  seven  o’clock,  and  went  down  the  great 
tunnel,  under  the  town,  a part  of  the  work  which,  more  than  any 
other,  astonished  the  numerous  strangers  present.  It  is,  indeed, 
a wonderful  work,  and  makes  an  impression  never  to  be  effaced 
from  the  memory.  The  Company’s  yard,  from  Saint  James’s 
street  to  Wapping,  was  filled  with  carriages  waiting  for  the  re- 
turning parties,  who  separated  with  feelings  of  mingled  grati- 
fication and  distress,  to  which  we  shall  not  attempt  to  give  ut- 
terance. We  afterwards  learnt  that  the  parties  we  left  at  Man- 
chester placed  the  three  remaining  engines  together,  and  all  the 
carriages  together,  so  as  to  form  one  grand  procession,  includ- 
ing twenty-four  carriages,  and  were  coming  home  at  a steady 
pace,  when  they  were  met  near  Newton  by  the  other  three  en- 
gines, which  were  then  attached  to  the  rest,  and  they  arrived  in 
Liverpool  about  ten  o’clock. 

“ Thus  ended  a pageant,  which,  for  importance  as  to  its  ob- 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


25 


ject  and  grandeur  in  its  details,  is  admitted  to  have  exceeded 
anything  ever  witnessed.  We  conversed  with  many  gentlemen 
of  great  experience  in  public  life,  who  spoke  of  the  scene  as  sur- 
passing anything  they  had  ever  beheld,  and  who  computed,  upon 
data  which  they  considered  to  be  satisfactory,  that  not  fewer  than 
500,000  persons  must  have  been  spectators  of  the  procession.” 

So  far  from  being  a success,  the  occasion  was,  after 
the  accident  to  Mr.  Huskisson,  such  a series  of  mor- 
tifying disappointments  and  the  Duke  of  Wellington’s 
experience  at  Manchester  had  been  so  very  far  re- 
moved  from  gratifying,  that  the  directors  of  the  com- 
pany felt  moved  to  exonerate  themselves  from  the 
load  of  censure  by  an  official  explanation.  This  they 
did  in  the  following  language  : 

“ On  the  subject  of  delay  which  took  place  in  the  starting  from 
Manchester,  and  consequently  in  the  arrival  at  Liverpool,  of  the 
last  three  engines,  with  twenty-four  carriages  and  six  hundred 
passengers,  being  the  train  allotted  to  six  of  the  engines,  we  are 
authorized  to  state  that  the  directors  think  it  due  to  the  proprie- 
tors and  others  constituting  the  large  assemblage  of  company  in 
the  above  trains  to  make  known  the  following  particulars  : 

“ Three  out  of  the  six  locomotive  engines,  which  belonged  to 
the  above  teams,  had  proceeded  on  the  south  road  from  Man- 
chester to  Eccles,  to  take  in  water,  with  the  intention  of  return- 
ing to  Manchester,  and  so  getting  out  of  that  line  of  road  before 
any  of  the  trains  should  start  on  their  return  home.  Before  this, 
however,  was  accomplished,  the  following  circumstances  seemed 
to  render  it  imperative  for  the  train  of  carriages,  containing  the 
Duke  of  Wellington  and  a great  many  of  the  distinguished  visit- 
ors to  leave  Manchester.  The  eagerness  on  the  part  of  the  crowd 
to  see  the  Duke,  and  to  shake  hands  with  him,  was  very  great, 
so  much  so,  that  his  Grace  held  out  both  his  hands  to  the  press- 

2 


26 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


in g multitude  at  the  same  time  : the  assembling  crowd  becom- 
ing more  dense  every  minute,  closely  surrounded  the  carriages, 
as  the  principal  attraction  was  this  particular  train.  The  diffi- 
culty of  proceeding  at  all  increased  every  moment  and  conse- 
quently the  danger  of  accident  upon  the  attempt  being  made  to 
force  a way  through  the  throng  also  increased.  At  this  junc- 
ture Mr.  Lavender,  the  head  of  the  police  establishment  of  Man- 
chester, interfered,  and  entreated  that  the  Duke’s  train  should 
move  on,  or  he  could  not  answer  for  the  consequences.  Under 
these  circumstances,  and  the  day  being  well  advanced,  it  was 
thought  expedient  at  all  events  to  move  forward  while  it  was 
still  practicable  to  do  so.  The  order  was  accordingly  given, 
and  the  train  passed  along  out  of  the  immediate  neighborhood 
of  Manchester  without  accident  to  any  one.  When  they  had 
proceeded  a few  miles  they  fell  in  with  the  engines  belonging  to 
the  trains  left  at  Manchester,  and  these  engines  being  on  the 
same  line  as  the  carriages  of  the  procession,  there  was  no  alter- 
native but  bringing  the  Duke’s  train  back  through  the  dense 
multitude  to  Manchester,  or  proceeding  with  three  extra  engines 
to  the  neighborhood  of  Liverpool,  (all  passing  places  from  one 
road  to  the  other  being  removed,  with  a view  to  safety,  on  the 
occasion,)  and  afterwards  sending  them  back  to  the  assistance 
of  the  trains  unfortunately  left  behind.  It  was  determined  to 
proceed  towards  Liverpool,  as  being  decidedly  the  most  advis- 
able course  under  the  circumstances  of  the  case  ; and  it  may  be 
mentioned  for  the  satisfaction  of  any  party  who  may  have  con- 
sidered that  he  was  in  some  measure  left  in  the  lurch,  that  Mr. 
Moss,  the  Deputy  Chairman,  had  left  Mrs.  Moss  and  several  of 
his  family  to  come  with  the  trains  which  had  been  so  left  behind. 
Three  engines  having  to  draw  a load  calculated  for  six,  their 
progress  was  of  course  much  retarded,  besides  a considerable 
delay  which  took  place  before  the  starting  of  the  last  trains, 
owing  to  the  uncertainty  which  existed  as  to  what  had  become 
of  the  three  missing  engines.  These  engines,  after  proceeding 
to  within  a few  miles  of  Liverpool,  were  enabled  to  return  to 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


2 7 


Parkside  (in  the  neighborhood  of  Newton)  where  they  were  at- 
tached to  the  other  three,  and  the  whole  proceeding  safely  to 
Liverpool,  where  they  arrived  at  ten  in  the  evening.” 

The  case  was,  however,  here  stated,  to  say  the 
least,  in  the  mildest  possible  manner.  The  fact  was 
that  the  authorities  at  Manchester  had,  and  not 
without  reason,  passed  a very  panic-stricken  hour  on 
account  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington.  That  person- 
age had  been  in  a position  of  no  inconsiderable 
peril.  Though  the  reporter  preserved  a decorous 
silence  on  that  point,  the  ministerial  car  had  on  the 
way  been  pelted,  as  well  as  hooted  ; and  at  Manches- 
ter a vast  mass  of  not  particularly  well  disposed  per- 
sons had  fairly  overwhelmed  both  police  and  soldiery, 
and  had  taken  complete  possession  of  the  tracks. 
They  were  not  riotous,  but  they  were  very  rough  ; 
and  they  insisted  on  climbing  upon  the  carriages  and 
pressing  their  attentions  on  the  distinguished  inmates 
in  a manner  somewhat  at  variance  with  English  ideas 
of  propriety.  The  Duke’s  efforts  at  conciliatory 
manners,  as  evinced  through  much  hand-shaking 
and  baby-kissing,  were  not  without  significance.  It 
was  small  matter  for  wonder,  therefore,  that  the 
terrified  authorities,  before  they  got  him  out  of  their 
town,  heartily  regretted  that  they  had  not  allowed 
him  to  have  his  own  way  after  the  accident  to  Mr. 
Huskisson,  when  he  proposed  to  turn  back  without 
coming  to  it.  Having  once  got  him  safely  started 
back  to  Liverpool,  therefore,  they  preferred  to  leave 
the  other  guests  to  take  care  of  themselves,  rather 


2S 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


than  have  the  Duke  face  the  crowd  again.  As  there 
were  no  sidings  on  that  early  road,  and  the  connections 
between  the  tracks  had,  as  a measure  of  safety,  been 
temporarily  removed,  the  ministerial  train  in  moving 
towards  Liverpool  had  necessarily  shoved  before  it 
the  engines  belonging  to  the  other  trains.  The 
unfortunate  guests  on  those  other  trains,  thus  left  to 
their  fate,  had  for  the  rest  of  the  day  a very  dreary 
time  of  it.  To  avoid  accidents,  the  six  trains 
abandoned  at  Manchester  were  united  into  one,  to 
which  were  attached  the  three  locomotives  remaining. 
In  this  form  they  started.  Presently  the  strain  broke 
the  couplings.  Pieces  of  rope  were  then  put  in 
requisition,  and  again  they  got  in  motion.  In  due 
time  the  three  other  engines  came  along,  but  they 
could  only  be  used  by  putting  them  on  in  front  of 
the  three  already  attached  to  the  train.  Two  of 
them  were  used  in  that  way,  and  the  eleven  cars  thus 
drawn  by  five  locomotives,  and  preceded  at  a short 
distance  by  one  other,  went  on  towards  Liverpool. 
It  was  dark,  and  to  meet  the  exigencies  of  the  occa- 
sion the  first  germ  of  the  present  elaborate  system 
of  railroad  night  signals  was  improvised  on  the  spot. 
From  the  foremost  and  pioneer  locomotive  obstacles 
were  signalled  to  the  train  locomotives  by  the  very 
primitive  expedient  of  swinging  the  lighted  end  of  a 
tar-rope.  At  Rainhill  the  weight  of  the  train  proved 
too  much  for  the  combined  motive-power,  and  the 
thoroughly  wearied  passengers  had  to  leave  their 
carriages  and  walk  up  the  incline.  When  they  got  to 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


29 


the  summit  and  resuming  their  seats,  were  again  in 
motion,  fresh  delay  was  occasioned  by  the  leading 
locomotive  running  into  a wheel-barrow,  maliciously 
placed  on  the  track  to  obstruct  it.  Not  until  ten 
o’clock  did  they  enter  the  tunnel  at  Liverpool. 
Meanwhile  all  sorts  of  rumors  of  general  disaster  had 
for  hours  been  circulating  among  the  vast  concourse 
of  spectators  who  were  assembled  waiting  for  their 
friends,  and  whose  relief  expressed  itself  in  hearty 
cheers  as  the  train  at  last  rolled  safely  into  the 
station. 

We  have  also  Miss  Kemble’s  story  of  this  day,  to 
which  in  her  letter  of  August  25th  she  had  looked 
forward  with  such  eager  interest.  With  her  father 
and  mother  she  had  been  staying  at  a country  place 
in  Lancashire,  and  in  her  account  of  the  affair  written 
in  1876  she  says  : 

“ The  whole  gay  party  assembled  at  Heaton,  my  mother  and 
myself  included,  went  to  Liverpool  for  the  opening  of  the  rail- 
road. The  throng  of  strangers  gathered  there  for  the  same  pur- 
pose made  it  almost  impossible  to  obtain  a night’s  lodging  for 
love  or  money ; and  glad  and  thankful  were  we,  to  put  up  with 
and  be  put  up  in  a tiny  garret  by  an  old  friend,  Mr.  Redley,  of 
the  Adelphi,  which  many  would  have  given  twice  what  we  paid 
to  obtain.  The  day  opened  gloriously,  and  never  was  an  innu- 
merable concourse  of  sight-seers  in  better  humor  than  the  surg- 
ing, swaying  crowd  that  lined  the  railroad  with  living  faces.  . . . 
After  this  disastrous  event  [the  accident  to  Mr.  Huskisson,]  the 
day  became  overcast,  and  as  we  neared  Manchester  the  sky  grew 
cloudy  and  dark,  and  it  began  to  rain.  The  vast  concourse  of 
people  who  had  assembled  to  witness  the  triumphant  arrival  of 
the  successful  travelers  was  of  the  lowest  order  of  mechanics 


30 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


and  artisans,  among-  whom  great  distress  and  a dangeious  spirit 
of  discontent  with  the  government  at  that  time  prevailed.  Groans 
and  hisses  greeted  the  carriage,  full  of  influential  personages,  in 
which  the  Duke  of  Wellington  sat.  High  above  the  grim  and 
grimy  crowd  of  scowling  faces  a loom  had  been  erected,  at  which 
sat  a tattered,  starved-looking  weaver,  evidently  set  there  as  a 
representative  man,  to  protest  against  this  triumph  of  machinery, 
and  the  gain  and  glory  which  the  wealthy  Liverpool  and  Man- 
chester men  were  likely  to  derive  from  it.  The  contrast  between 
our  departure  from  Liverpool  and  our  arrival  at  Manchester  was 
one  of  the  most  striking  things  I ever  witnessed.  * * * 

Manchester,  September  20th,  1830. 

My  Dearest  H— : 

^ ^ ^ ^ 5} 

“You  probably  have  by  this  time  heard  and  read  accounts  of 
the  opening  of  the  railroad,  and  the  fearful  accident  which  oc- 
curred at  it,  for  the  papers  are  full  of  nothing  else.  The  accident 
you  mention  did  occur,  but  though  the  unfortunate  man  who  was 
killed  bore  Mr.  Stephenson’s  name,  he  was  not  related  to  him. 
[Besides  Mr.  Huskisson,  another  man  named  Stephenson  had 
about  this  time  been  killed  on  the  railroad.]  I will  tell  you 
something  of  the  events  on  the  fifteenth,  as,  though  you 
may  be  acquainted  with  the  circumstances  of  poor  Mr.  Hus- 
kisson’s  death,  none  but  an  eye-witness  of  the  whole  scene 
can  form  a conception  of  it.  I told  you  that  we  had  had  places 
given  to  us,  and  it  was  the  main  purpose  of  our  returning  from 
Birmingham  to  Manchester  to  be  present  at  what  promised  to 
be  one  of  the  most  striking  events  in  the  scientific  annals  of  our 
country.  We  started  on  Wednesday  last,  to  the  number  of  about 
eight  hundred  people,  in  carriages  constructed  as  I before  de- 
scribed to  you.  The  most  intense  curiosity  and  excitement  pre- 
vailed, and  though  the  weather  was  uncertain,  enormous  masses 
of  densely  packed  people  lined  the  road,  shouting  and  waving 
hats  and  handkerchiefs  as  we  flew  by  them.  What  with  the 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


31 


sight  and  sound  of  these  cheering  multitudes  and  the  tremen- 
dous velocity  with  which  we  were  borne  past  them,  my  spirits 
rose  to  the  true  champagne  height,  and  I never  enjoyed  anything 
so  much  as  the  first  hour  of  our  progress.  I had  been  unluckily 
separated  from  my  mother  in  the  first  distribution  of  places,  but 
by  an  exchange  of  seats  which  she  was  enabled  to  make  she  re- 
joined me,  when  I was  at  the  height  of  my  ecstacy,  which  was 
considerably  damped  by  finding  that  she  was  frightened  to  death, 
and  intent  upon  nothing  but  devising  means  of  escaping  from  a 
situation  which  appeared  to  her  to  threaten  with  instant  annihila- 
tion herself  and  all  her  travelling  companions.  While  I was 
chewing  the  cud  of  this  disappointment,  which  was  rather  bitter, 
as  I expected  her  to  be  as  delighted  as  myself  with  our  excur- 
sion, a man  flew  by  us,  calling  out  through  a speaking  trumpet 
to  stop  the  engine,  for  that  somebody  in  the  directors’  car  had 
sustained  an  injury.  We  were  all  stopped  accordingly  and  pres- 
ently a hundred  voices  were  heard  exclaiming  that  Mr.  Huskis- 
son  was  killed.  The  confusion  that  ensued  is  indescribable  ; the 
calling  out  from  carriage  to  carriage  to  ascertain  the  truth,  the 
contrary  reports  which  were  sent  back  to  us,  the  hundred  ques- 
tions eagerly  uttered  at  once,  and  the  repeated  and  urgent  de- 
mands for  surgical  assistance,  created  a sudden  turmoil  that  was 
quite  sickening.  At  last  we  distinctly  ascertained  that  the  un- 
fortunate man’s  thigh  was  broken. 

“From  Lady  W — , who  was  in  the  duke’s  carriage,  and 
within  three  yards  of  the  spot  where  the  accident  happened,  I 
had  the  following  details,  the  horror  of  witnessing  wThich  we 
were  spared  through  our  situation  behind  the  great  carriage. 
The  engine  had  stopped  to  take  in  a supply  of  water,  and  sev- 
eral of  the  gentlemen  in  the  directors’  carriage  had  jumped  out 
to  look  about  them.  Lord  W — , Count  Batthyany,  Count  Ma- 
tuscenitz,  and  Mr.  Huskisson  among  the  rest  were  standing 
talking  in  the  middle  of  the  road,  when  an  engine  on  the  other 
line,  which  was  parading  up  and  down  merely  to  show  its  speed, 
was  seen  coming  down  upon  them  like  lightning.  The  most 


32 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


active  of  those  in  peril  sprang  back  into  their  seats  ; Lord  W — 
saved  his  life  only  by  rushing  behind  the  duke’s  carriage,  Count 
Matuscenitz  had  but  just  leaped  into  it,  with  the  engine  all  but 
touching  his  heels  as  he  did  so  ; while  poor  Mr.  Huskisson,  less 
active  from  the  effects  of  age  and  ill  health,  bewildered  too  by 
the  frantic  cries  of  * Stop  the  engine  ! Clear  the  track  ! ’ that 
resounded  on  all  sides,  completely  lost  his  head,  looked  help- 
lessly to  the  right  and  left,  and  was  instantaneously  prostrated 
by  the  fatal  machine,  which  dashed  down  like  a thunderbolt 
upon  him,  and  passed  over  his  leg,  smashing  and  manglingit  in 
the  most  horrible  way.  (Lady  W — said  she  distinctly  heard 
the  crushing  of  the  bone.)  So  terrible  was  the  effect  of  the  ap- 
palling accident  that  except  that  ghastly  “ crushing  ” and  poor 
Mrs.  Huskisson ’s  piercing  shriek,  not  a sound  was  heard  or  a 
word  uttered  among  the  immediate  spectators  of  the  catastrophe. 
Lord  W—  was  the  first  to  raise  the  poor  sufferer,  and  calling  to 
his  aid  his  surgical  skill,  which  is  considerable,  he  tied  up  the 
severed  artery,  and  for  a time  at  least,  prevented  death  by  a loss 
of  blood.  Mr.  Huskisson  was  then  placed  in  a carriage  with  his 
wife  and  Lord  W — , and  the  engine  having  been  detached  from 
the  directors’  carriage,  conveyed  them  to  Manchester.  So  great 
was  the  shock  produced  upon  the  whole  party  by  this  event  that 
the  Duke  of  Wellington  declared  his  intention  not  to  proceed, 
but  to  return  immediately  to  Liverpool.  However,  upon  its 
being  represented  to  him  that  the  whole  population  of  Man- 
chester had  turned  out  to  witness  the  procession,  and  that  a dis- 
appointment might  give  rise  to  riots  and  disturbances,  he  con- 
sented to  go  on,  and  gloomily  enough  the  rest  of  the  journey 
was  accomplished.  We  had  intended  returning  to  Liverpool  by 
the  railroad,  but  Lady  W — , who  seized  upon  me  in  the  midst 
of  the  crowd,  persuaded  us  to  accompany  her  home,  which  we 
gladly  did.  Lord  W — , did  not  return  till  past  ten  o’clock,  at 
which  hour  he  brought  the  intelligence  of  Mr.  Huskisson’s 
death.  I need  not  tell  you  of  the  sort  of  whispering  awe  which 
this  event  threw  over  our  whole  circle  ; and  yet  great  as  was  the 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


33 


horror  excited  by  it,  I could  not  help  feeling  how  evanescent  the 
effect  of  it  was,  after  all.  The  shuddering  terror  of  seeing  our 
fellow-creature  thus  struck  down  by  our  side,  and  the  breathless 
thankfulness  for  our  own  preservation,  rendered  the  first  even- 
ing of  our  party  at  Heaton  almost  solemn  ; but  the  next  day 
the  occurrence  became  a subject  of  earnest,  it  is  true,  but  free 
discussion  ; and  after  that  was  alluded  to  with  almost  as  little 
apparent  feeling  as  if  it  had  not  passed  under  our  eyes,  and  with- 
in the  space  of  a few  hours.” 

In  spite  of  accidents  and  contre-temps,  however, 
the  road  was  opened  to  traffic,  and  at  once  proceeded 
to  outdo  in  its  results  the  most  eager  anticipations  of 
its  friends.  No  account  of  its  first  beginnings 
would,  however,  be  complete  for  our  time,  which 
did  not  also  give  an  idea  of  the  impressions  produced 
on  one  travelling  over  it  before  yet  the  novelty  of 
the  thing  had  quite  worn  away.  It  was  a long  time, 
comparatively,  after  September,  1830,  before  the  men 
who  had  made  a trip  over  the  railroad  ceased  to  be 
objects  of  deep  curiosity.  Here  is  the  account  of  his 
experience  by  one  of  these  far-travelled  men,  with  all 
its  freshness  still  lingering  about  it  : 

“ Although  the  whole  passage  between  Liverpool  and  Man- 
chester is  a series  of  enchantments,  surpassing  any  in  the  Ara- 
bian Nights,  because  they  are  realities,  not  fictions,  yet  there 
are  certain  epochs  in  the  transit  which  are  peculiarly  exciting. 
These  are  the  startings,  the  ascents,  the  descents,  the  tunnels, 
the  Chat  Moss,  the  meetings.  At  the  instant  of  starting,  or 
rather  before,  the  automaton  belches  forth  an  explosion  of  steam, 
and  seems  for  a second  or  two  quiescent.  But  quickly  the 
explosions  are  reiterated,  with  shorter  and  shorter  intervals,  till 
they  become  too  rapid  to  be  counted,  though  still  distinct. 


34 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


These  belchings  or  explosions  more  nearly  resemble  the  pant- 
ings  of  a lion  or  tiger,  than  any  sound  that  has  ever  vibrated 
on  my  ear.  During  the  ascent  they  became  slower  and  slower, 
till  the  automaton  actually  labors  like  an  animal  out  of  breath, 
from  the  tremendous  efforts  to  gain  the  highest  point  of  eleva- 
tion. The  progression  is  proportionate  ; and  before  the  said 
point  is  gained,  the  train  is  not  moving  faster  than  a horse  can 
pace.  With  the  slow  motion  of  the  mighty  and  animated 
machine,  the  breathing  becomes  more  laborious,  the  growl 
more  distinct,  till  at  length  the  animal  appears  exhausted,  and 
groans  like  the  tiger,  when  overpowered  in  combat  by  the 
buffalo. 

“ The  moment  that  the  height  is  reached  and  the  descent 
commences,  the  pantings  rapidly  increase  ; the  engine  with  its 
train  starts  off  with  augmenting  velocity ; and  in  a few  seconds 
it  is  flying  down  the  declivity  like  lightning,  and  with  a uniform 
growl  or  roar,  like  a continuous  discharge  of  distant  artillery. 

“At  this  period,  the  whole  train  is  going  at  the  rate  of  thirty- 
five  or  forty  miles  an  hour ! I was  on  the  outside,  and  in  front 
of  the  first  carriage,  just  over  the  engine.  The  scene  was  mag- 
nificent, I had  almost  said  terrific.  Although  it  was  a dead 
calm  the  wind  appeared  to  be  blowing  a hurricane,  such  was 
the  velocity  with  which  we  darted  through  the  air.  Yet  all  was 
steady  ; and  there  was  something  in  the  precision  of  the  ma- 
chinery that  inspired  a degree  of  confidence  over  fear — of  safety 
over  danger.  A man  may  travel  from  the  Pole  to  the  Equator, 
from  the  Straits  of  Malacca  to  the  Isthmus  of  Darien,  and  he 
will  see  nothing  so  astonishing  as  this.  The  pangs  of  Etna  and 
Vesuvius  excite  feelings  of  horror  as  well  as  of  terror  ; the  con- 
vulsion of  the  elements  during  a thunderstorm  carries  with  it 
nothing  but  pride,  much  less  of  pleasure,  to  counteract  the  awe 
inspired  by  the  fearful  workings  of  perturbed  nature  ; but  the 
scene  which  is  here  presented,  and  which  I cannot  adequately 
describe,  engenders  a proud  consciousness  of  superiority  in  hu- 
man ingenuity,  more  intense  and  convincing  than  any  effort  or 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


35 


product  of  the  poet,  the  painter,  the  philosopher,  or  the  divine. 
The  projections  or  transits  of  the  train  through  the  tunnels  or 
arches,  are  very  electrifying.  The  deafening  peal  of  thunder, 
the  sudden  immersion  in  gloom,  and  the  clash  of  reverberated 
sounds  in  confined  space,  combine  to  produce  a momentary 
shudder  or  idea  of  destruction — a thrill  of  annihilation,  which  is 
instantly  dispelled  on  emerging  into  the  cheerful  light. 

“ The  meetings  or  crossings  of  the  steam  trains  flying  in  op- 
posite directions  are  scarcely  less  agitating  to  the  nerves  than 
their  transits  through  the  tunnels.  The  velocity  of  their  course, 
the  propinquity  or  apparent  identity  of  the  iron  orbits  along 
which  these  meteors  move,  call  forth  the  involuntary  but  fearful 
thought  of  a possible  collision,  with  all  its  horrible  consequences. 
The  period  of  suspense,  however,  though  exquisitely  painful,  is 
but  momentary  ; and  in  a few  seconds  the  object  of  terror  is  far 
out  of  sight  behind. 

“ Nor  is  the  rapid  passage  across  Chat  Moss  unworthy  of 
notice.  The  ingenuity  with  which  two  narrow  rods  of  iron  are 
made  to  bear  whole  trains  of  wagons,  laden  with  many  hundred 
tons  of  commerce,  and  bounding  across  a wide,  semi-fluid  mo- 
rass, previously  impassable  by  man  or  beast,  is  beyond  all  praise 
and  deserving  of  eternal  record.  Only  conceive  a slender  bridge 
of  two  minute  iron  rails,  several  miles  in  length,  level  as  Waterloo, 
elastic  as  whalebone,  yet  firm  as  adamant ! Along  this  splen- 
did triumph  of  human  genius — this  veritable  via  triump halts 
— the  train  of  carriages  bounds  with  the  velocity  of  the  stricken 
deer  ; the  vibrations  of  the  resilient  moss  causing  the  ponderous 
engine  and  its  enormous  suite  to  glide  along  the  surface  of  an 
extensive  quagmire  as  safely  as  a practiced  skater  skims  the  icy 
mirror  of  a frozen  lake. 

“The  first  class  or  train  is  the  most  fashionable,  but  the  sec- 
ond or  third  are  the  most  amusing.  I travelled  one  day  from 
Liverpool  to  Manchester  in  the  lumber  train.  Many  of  the  car- 
riages were  occupied  by  the  swinish  multitude,  and  others  by  a 
multitude  of  swine.  These  last  were  naturally  vociferous  if  not 


36 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


eloquent.  It  is  evident  that  the  other  passengers  would  have 
been  considerably  annoyed  by  the  orators  of  this  last  group,  had 
there  not  been  stationed  in  each  carriage  an  officer  somewhat 
analogous  to  the  Usher  of  the  Black  Rod,  but  whose  designa- 
tion on  the  railroad  I found  to  be  ‘ Comptroller  of  the  Gammon.* 
No  sooner  did  one  of  the  long-faced  gentlemen  raise  his  note  too 
high,  or  wag  his  jaw  too  long,  than  the  ‘ Comptroller  of  the  Gam- 
mon * gave  him  a whack  over  the  snout  with  the  butt  end  of  his 
shillelagh  ; a snubber  which  never  failed  to  stop  his  oratory  for 
the  remainder  of  the  journey.” 

To  one  familiar  with  the  history  of  English  rail- 
road legislation  the  last  paragraph  is  peculiarly  sig- 
nificant. For  years  after  the  railroad  system  was  in- 
augurated, and  until  legislation  was  invoked  to  com- 
pel something  better,  the  companies  persisted  in 
carrying  passengers  of  the  third  class  in  uncovered 
carriages,  exposed  to  all  weather,  and  with  no  more 
decencies  or  comforts  than  were  accorded  to  swine. 


Naturally,  the  beginning  of  the  railroad  system  in 
America,  was  neither  so  interesting  nor  so  picturesque 
as  it  had  been  in  the  case  of  Great  Britain.  At  most 
it  was  but  an  imitation  ; and  that  too,  on  a small  scale. 
Yet,  about  all  its  details  there  was  something  which 
cannot  but  be  peculiarly  suggestive  to  the  American 
of  the  present  day.  As  you  review  the  record,  it 
seems  to  relate  to  another  country  and  almost  to  a 
different  world.  With  the  Manchester  & Liverpool 
road  this  was  not  so.  There  the  thing,  for  a begin- 
ning, was  on  a large  scale.  The  cost  of  the  struc- 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


37 


ture,  the  number  of  the  locomotives,  the  fame  of  the 
guests,  the  mass  and  excitement  of  the  spectators 
were  all  equal  to  the  occasion.  This  was  not  so  in 
America.  Everything  was  diminutive  and  poor  in 
1831.  The  provincialism  of  the  time  and  place  is 
almost  oppressive.  In  turning  over  the  old  records 
the  eye  constantly  rests  on  the  names,  familiar  to  us, 
of  men  now  living  ; but  it  seems  scarcely  possible  that 
any  human  life  can  have  spanned  the  well  nigh  in- 
credible gap  which  separates  the  America  of  1878 
from  that  of  1830.  Certainly,  neither  anywhere  else 
nor  at  any  other  time  has  the  world  in  a space  of  less 
than  fifty  years  witnessed  such  extraordinary  develop- 
ment. 

Whatever  credit  is  due  to  the  construction  of  the 
first  railroad  ever  built  in  America  is  usually  claimed 
for  the  State  of  Massachusetts.  Every  one  who  has 
ever  looked  into  a school  history  of  the  United  States 
knows  something  of  the  Quincy  railway  of  1826. 
Properly  speaking,  however,  this  was  never — or  at 
least,  never  until  the  year  1871, — a railroad  at  all. 
It  was  nothing  but  a specimen  of  what  had  been  al- 
most from  time  immemorial  in  common  use  in  Eng- 
land, under  the  name  of  “ tram-ways.”  Indeed  it  is  a 
curious  illustration  of  the  combined  poverty  and  back- 
wardness of  America  at  that  time,  that  so  common  and 
familiar  an  appliance  should  only  then  have  been  in- 
troduced, and  should  have  excited  so  much  interest 
and  astonishment.  This  road,  known  as  the  Granite 
railway,  was  built  by  those  interested  in  erecting  the 


38 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


Bunker  Hill  Monument,  for  the  purpose  of  getting  the 
stone  down  from  the  Quincy  quarries  to  a wharf  on 
Neponset  River,  from  which  it  was  shipped  to  its  des- 
tination. The  whole  distance  was  three  miles,  and  the 
cost  of  the  road  was  about  $34,000.  At  the  quarry 
end  there  was  a steep  inclined  plane,  up  and  down 
which  the  cars  were  moved  by  means  of  a stationary 
engine.  From  the  foot  of  that  incline  the  road  sloped 
gently  off  to  its  river  terminus.  There  was  nothing 
in  its  construction  which  partook  of  the  character  of 
a modern  railroad.  The  tracks  were  five  feet  apart, 
and  laid  on  stone  sleepers  eight  feet  apart.  On  this 
stone  substructure  wooden  rails  were  laid,  and  upon 
these  another  rail  of  strap  iron.  .Down  this  road  two 
horses  could  draw  a load  of  forty  tons,  and  thus  the 
expense  of  moving  stone  from  the  quarries  to  the 
river  was  reduced  to  about  a sixth  part  of  what  it 
was  while  the  highway  alone  was  in  use. 

Such  was  the  famous  Quincy  railway,  the  con- 
struction of  which  is  still  referred  to  as  marking  an 
era  of  the  first  importance  in  American  history. 
Such,  also,  it  remained  down  to  the  year  1871, — a 
mere  tramway,  operated  exclusively  by  means  of 
horses.  In  that  year  the  franchise  v/as  at  last  pur- 
chased by  the  Old  Colony  Railroad  Company,  the 
ancient  structure  was  completely  demolished,  and  a 
modern  railroad  built  on  the  right  of  way.  Through 
the  incorporation  into  it  of  the  old  Granite  railway, 
therefore,  the  line  which  connects  the  chief  town  of 
what  was  once  Plymouth  Colony  with  the  chief  town 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM . 


39 


of  what  was  once  the  colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay 
has  become  the  oldest  railroad  line  in  America.  In 
this  there  is,  so  to  speak,  a manifest  historical  pro- 
priety. 

Apart,  however,  from  the  construction  of  the 
Granite  railway,  Massachusetts  was  neither  particu- 
larly early  nor  particularly  energetic  in  its  railroad 
development.  At  a later  day  many  of  her  sister 
States  were  in  advance  of  her,  and  especially  was  this 
true  of  South  Carolina.  There  is,  indeed,  some 
reason  for  believing  that  the  South  Carolina  Rail- 
road was  the  first  ever  constructed  in  any  country 
with  a definite  plan  of  operating  it  exclusively  by 
locomotive  steam  power.  But  in  America  there  was 
not, — indeed  from  the  very  circumstances  of  the 
case  there  could  not  have  been, — any  such  dramatic 
occasions  and  surprises  as  those  witnessed  at  Liver- 
pool in  1829  and  1830.  Nevertheless  the  people  of 
Charleston  were  pressing  close  on  the  heels  of  those 
of  Liverpool,  for  on  the  15th  of  January  1831, — 
exactly  four  months  after  theformal  opening  of  the 
Manchester  & Liverpool  road, — the  first  anniversary 
of  the  South  Carolina  Railroad  was  celebrated  with 
due  honor.  A queer  looking  machine,  the  outline 
of  which  was  sufficient  in  itself  to  prove  that  the  in- 
ventor owed  nothing  to  Stephenson,  had  been  con- 
structed at  the  West  Point  Foundry  Works  in  New 
York  during  the  summer  of  1830 — a first  attempt  to 
supply  that  locomotive  power  which  the  Board  had, 
with  a sublime  confidence  in  possibilities,  unanimous- 


40 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


ly  voted  on  the  14th  of  the  preceding  January  should 
alone  be  used  on  the  road.  The  name  of  Best 
Friend  was  given  to  this  very  simple  product  of  na- 
tive genius.  The  idea  of  the  multitubular  boiler  had 
not  yet  suggested  itself  in  America.  The  Best 
Friend , therefore,  was  supplied  with  a common  ver- 
tical boiler  u in  form  of  an  old  fashioned  porter-bottle, 
the  furnace  at  the  bottom  surrounded  with  water, 
and  all  filled  inside  of  what  we  call  teats,  running  out 
from  the  sides  and  tops.”  By  means  of  these  pro- 
jections, or  “ teats,”  a portion  at  least  of  the  neces- 
sary heating  surface  was  provided.  The  cylinder 
was  at  the  front  of  the  platform,  the  rear  end  of  which 
was  occupied  by  the  boiler,  and  it  was  fed  by  means 
of  a connecting  pipe.  Thanks  to  the  indefatigable 
researches  of  an  enthusiast  on  railroad  construction, 
we  have  an  account  of  the  performances  of  this,  and 
all  the  other  pioneers  among  American  locomotives  ; 
and  the  pictures  with  which  Mr.  W.  H.  Brown  has 
enriched  his  book*  would  alone  render  it  both  curious 
and  valuable.  Prior  to  the  stockholders*  anniversary 
of  January  15th,  1831,  it  seems  that  th <z  Best  Friend 
had  made  several  trial  trips  “ running  at  the  rate  of 
sixteen  to  twenty-one  miles  an  hour,  with  forty  or 
fifty  passengers  in  some  four  or  five  cars,  and  without 
the  cars,  thirty  to  thirty-five  miles  per  hour.”  The 
stockholders’  day  was,  however,  a special  occasion,  and 
the  papers  of  the  following  Monday,  for  it  happened 
on  a Saturday,  gave  the  following  account  of  it: 

* The  History  of  the  First  Locomotive  in  America. 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


41 


“ Notice  having  been  previously  given,  inviting  the  stockhold- 
ers, about  one  hundred  and  fifty  assembled  in  the  course  of  the 
morning  at  the  company’s  building  in  Line  Street,  together  with 
a number  of  invited  guests.  The  weather  the  day  and  night 
previous  had  been  stormy,  and  the  morning  was  cold  and  cloudy. 
Anticipating  a postponement  of  the  ceremonies,  the  locomotive 
engine  had  been  taken  to  pieces  for  cleaning,  but  upon  the  as- 
sembling of  the  company  she  was  put  in  older,  the  cylinders  new 
packed,  and,  at  the  word,  the  apparatus  was  ready  for  movement. 
The  first  trip  was  performed  with  two  pleasure-cars  attached, 
and  a small  carriage,  fitted  for  the  occasion,  upon  which  was  a 
detachment  of  United  States  troops  and  a field  piece  which  had 
been  politely  granted  by  Major  Belton  for  the  occasion.  . . The 
number  of  passengers  brought  down,  which  was  performed  in 
two  trips,  was  eslimated  at  upward  of  two  hundred.  A band 
of  music  enlivened  the  scene,  and  great  hilarity  and  good  humor 
prevailed  throughout  the  day.” 

The  “ great  hilarity  and  good  humor  ” of  this  occa- 
sion no  one  can  doubt  who  studies  the  supposed  con- 
temporaneous picture  of  it  contained  in  Mr.  Brown’s 
book.  The  pleasure  must,  however,  have  been  largely 
due  to  novelty,  inasmuch  as  a railroad  journey  on  a 
“ cold  and  cloudy  ” January  day,  performed  in  “ two 
pleasure  cars,”  between  which  and  an  “ old  fashioned 
porter-bottle  ” of  a locomotive,  puffing  out  smoke  and 
cinders,  there  was  nothing  but  a “small  carriage  ’’  fit- 
ted up  to  carry  “ a field  piece,”  while  a band  of  music 
enlivened  the  whole — taking  all  these  ingredients  to- 
gether, it  would  not  at  this  time  seem  easy  to  com- 
pound from  them  a day  of  high  physical  enjoyment. 
But  the  fathers  were  a race  of  simpler  tastes. 

It  was  not  long,  however,  before  the  Best  Friend 


42 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


came  to  serious  grief.  Naturally,  and  even  necessarily, 
inasmuch  as  it  was  a South  Carolina  institution,  it  was 
provided  with  a negro  fireman.  It  so  happened  that 
this  functionary  while  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  was 
much  annoyed  by  the  escape  of  steam  from  the  safety- 
valve,  and,  not  having  made  himself  complete  master 
of  the  principles  underlying  the  use  of  steam  as  a 
source  of  power,  he  took  advantage  of  a temporary 
absence  of  the  engineer  in  charge  to  effect  a radical 
remedy  of  this  cause  of  annoyance.  He  not  only  fast- 
ened down  the  valve  lever,  but  further  made  the  thing 
perfectly  sure  by  sitting  on  it.  The  consequences  were 
hardly  less  disastrous  to  the  Best  Friend  than  to  the 
chattel  fireman.  Neither  were  of  much  further  practi- 
cal use.  Before  this  mishap  chanced,  however,  in  June, 
1831,  a second  locomotive,  called  the  West  Point , had 
arrived  in  Charleston  ; and  this  at  last  was  construct- 
ed on  the  principle  of  Stephenson's  Rocket . In  its 
general  aspect,  indeed,  it  greatly  resembled  that  al- 
ready famous  prototype.  There  is  a very  characteris- 
tic and  suggestive  cut  representing  a trial  trip  made 
with  this  locomotive  on  March  5th,  1831.  The  nerves 
of  the  Charleston  people  had  been  a good  deal  dis- 
turbed and  their  confidence  in  steam  as  a safe  motor 
shaken  by  the  disaster  which  had  befallen  the  Best 
Friend . Mindful  of  this  fact,  and  very  properly  so- 
licitous for  the  safety  of  their  guests,  the  directors 
now  had  recourse  to  a very  simple  and  ingenious 
expedient.  They  put  what  they  called  a “ barrier  car  *’ 
between  the  locomotive  and  passenger  coaches  of  the 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


43 


train.  This  barrier  car  consisted  of  a platform  on 
wheels  upon  which  were  piled  six  bales  of  cotton.  A 
fortification  was  thus  provided  between  the  passengers 
and  any  future  negro  sitting  on  the  safety  valve.  We 
are  also  assured  that  “ the  safety  valve  being  out  of 
the  reach  of  any  person  but  the  engineer,  will  contrib- 
ute to  the  prevention  of  accidents  in  future,  such  as 
befel  the  Best  Friend . Judging  by  the  cut  which  rep- 
resents the  train,  this  occasion  must  have  been  even 
more  marked  for  its  “ hilarity  ” than  the  earlier  one 
which  has  already  been  described.  Besides  the  loco- 
motive and  the  barrier  car  there  are  four  passenger 
coaches.  In  the  first  of  these  was  a negro  band,  in 
general  appearance  very  closely  resembling  the  min- 
strels of  a later  day,  the  members  of  which  are  ener- 
getically performing  on  musical  instruments  of  vari- 
ous familiar  descriptions.  Then  follow  three  cars  full 
of  the  saddest  possible  looking  white  passengers,  who 
were  present  as  we  are  informed  to  the  number  of 
one  hundred  and  seventeen.  The  excursion  was, 
however,  highly  successful,  and  two  and  a quarter 
miles  of  road  were  passed  over  in  the  short  space  of 
eight  minutes, — about  the  speed  at  which  a good 
horse  would  trot  for  the  same  distance. 

This  was  in  March,  1831.  About  six  months 
before,  however,  there  had  actually  been  a trial  of 
speed  between  a horse  and  one  of  the  pioneer 
locomotives,  which  had  not  resulted  in  favor  of  the 
locomotive.  It  took  place  on  the  present  Baltimore 
& Ohio  road  upon  the  28th  of  August,  1830.  The 


44 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


engine  in  this  case  was  contrived  by  no  other  than 
Mr.  Peter  Cooper.  And  it  affords  a striking  illus- 
tration of  how  recent  those  events  which  now  seem 
so  remote  really  were,  that  here  is  a man  still  living, 
and  among  the  most  familiar  to  the  eyes  and  mouths 
of  the  present  generation,  who  was  a contemporary 
of  Stephenson,  and  himself  invented  a locomotive 
during  the  Rainhill  year,  being  then  nearly  forty  years 
of  age.  The  Cooper  engine,  however,  was  scarcely 
more  than  a working  model.  Its  active-minded 
inventor  hardly  seems  to  have  aimed  at  anything 
more  than  a demonstration  of  possibilities.  The 
whole  thing  weighed  only  a ton,  and  was  of  one-horse 
power  ; in  fact  it  was  not  larger  than  those  hand- 
cars  now  in  common  use  with  railroad  section-men. 
The  boiler,  about  the  size  of  a modern  kitchen  boiler, 
stood  upright  and  was  filled  above  the  furnace,  which 
occupied  the  lower  section,  with  vertical  tubes.  The 
cylinder  was  but  three  and  a half  inches  in  diameter, 
and  the  wheels  were  moved  by  gearing.  In  order  to 
secure  the  requisite  pressure  of  steam  in  so  small  a 
boiler,  a sort  of  bellows  was  provided  which  was  kept 
in  action  by  means  of  a drum  attached  to  one  of  the 
car-wheels  over  which  passed  a cord  which  worked  a 
pulley,  which  in  turn  worked  the  bellows.  Thus  of 
Stephenson's  two  great  devices,  without  either  of 
which  his  success  at  Rainhill  would  have  been  impos- 
sible,— the  waste-steam  blast  and  the  multitubular 
boiler, — Peter  Cooper  had  only  got  hold  of  the  last. 
He  owed  his  defeat  in  the  race  between  his  engine 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


45 


and  a horse  to  the  fact  that  he  had  not  got  hold  of 
the  first.  It  happened  in  this  wise.  Several  exper- 
imental trips  had  been  made  with  the  little  engine 
on  the  Baltimore  & Ohio  road,  the  first  sections  of 
which  had  recently  been  completed  and  were  then 
operated  by  means  of  horses.  The  success  of  these 
trips  was  such,  that  at  last,  just  seventeen  days 
before  the  formal  opening  of  the  Manchester  & 
Liverpool  road  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic,  a 
small  open  car  was  attached  to  the  engine, — the  name 
of  which,  by  the  way,  was  Tom  Thumb — and  upon 
this  a party  of  directors  and  their  friends  were 
carried  from  Baltimore  to  Ellicott’s  Mills  and  back; 
a distance  of  some  twenty-six  miles.  The  trip  out 
was  made  in  an  hour  and  was  very  successful.  The 
return  was  less  so,  and  for  the  following  reason : 

“ The  great  stage  proprietors  of  the  day  were  Stockton  and 
Stokes;  and  on  that  occasion  a gallant  gray,  of  great  beauty 
and  power,  was  driven  by  them  from  town,  attached  to  another 
car  on  the  second  track— for  the  company  had  begun  by  making 
two  tracks  to  the  Mills — and  met  the  engine  at  the  Relay  House, 
on  its  way  back.  From  this  point  it  was  determined  to  have  a 
race  home,  and  the  start  being  even,  away  went  horse  and  en- 
gine, the  snort  of  the  one  and  the  puff  of  the  other  keeping 
tune  and  time. 

“ At  first  the  gray  had  the  best  of  it,  for  his  steam  would  be 
applied  to  the  greatest  advantage  on  the  instant,  while  the  en- 
gine had  to  wait  until  the  rotation  of  the  wheels  set  the  blower 
to  work.  The  horse  was  perhaps  a quarter  of  a mile  ahead, 
when  the  safety  valve  of  the  engine  lifted,  and  the  thin  blue 
vapor  issuing  from  it  showed  an  excess  of  steam.  The  blower 
whistled,  the  steam  blew  off  in  vapory  clouds,  the  pace  increased. 


* 


46 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


the  passengers  shouted,  the  engine  gained  on  the  horse,  soon  it 
lapped  him — the  silk  was  plied — the  race  was  neck  and  neck, 
nose  and  nose, — then  the  engine  passed  the  horse,  and  a great 
hurrah  hailed  the  victory.  But  it  was  not  repeated,  for  just  at 
this  time,  when  the  gray’s  master  was  about  giving  up,  the  band 
which  draws  the  pulley  which  moved  the  blower  slipped  from 
the  drum,  the  safety  valve  ceased  to  scream,  and  the  engine,  for 
want  of  breath,  began  to  wheeze  and  pant.  In  vain  Mr.  Cooper, 
who  was  his  own  engineer  and  fireman,  lacerated  his  hands  in 
attempting  to  replace  the  band  upon  the  wheel ; the  horse  gained 
on  the  machine  and  passed  it,  and  although  the  band  was  pres- 
ently replaced,  and  steam  again  did  its  best,  the  horse  was  too 
far  ahead  to  be  overtaken,  and  came  in  the  winner  of  the  race.” 

Poor  and  crude  as  the  country  was,  however, 
America  showed  itself  far  more  ready  to  take  in  the 
far  reaching  consequences  of  the  initiative  which 
Great  Britain  gave  in  1830  than  any  other  country  in 
the  world.  Belgium,  under  the  enlightened  rule  of 
King  Leopold,  did  not  move  in  the  new  departure 
until  1834,  and  France  was  slower  yet.  The  fact  is, 
however,  that  those  countries  did  not  feel  the  need 
of  the  railroad  at  all  in  the  same  degree  as  either  Eng- 
land or.  America.  They  already  had  excellent  systems 
of  roads  which  sufficed  for  all  their  present  needs. 
In  America,  on  the  contrary,  the  roads  were  few  and 
badly  built ; while  in  England,  though  they  were  good 
enough,  the  volume  of  traffic  had  outgrown  their 
capacity.  America  suffered  from  too  few  roads ; 
England  from  too  much  traffic.  Both  were  restlessly 
casting  about  for  some  form  of  relief.  Accordingly, 
all  through  the  time  during  which  Stephenson  was 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


47 


fighting  the  battle  of  the  locomotive,  America,  as  if 
in  anticipation  of  his  victory,  was  building  railroads. 
It  might  almost  be  said  that  there  was  a railroad 
mania.  Massachusetts  led  offin  1826  ; Pennsylvania 
followed  in  1827,  and  in  1828  Maryland  and  South 
Carolina.  Of  the  great  trunk  lines  of  the  country,  a 
portion  of  the  New  York  Central  was  chartered  in 
1825  ; the  construction  of  the  Baltimore  & Ohio 
was  begun  on  July  4th,  1828.  The  country,  there- 
fore, was  not  only  ripe  to  accept  the  results  of  the 
Rainhill  contest,  but  it  was  anticipating  them  with 
eager  hope.  Had  George  Stephenson  known  what 
was  going  on  in  America  he  would  not  when  writing 
to  his  son  in  1829  have  limited  his  anticipation  of 
orders  for  locomotives  to  “ at  least  thirty.” 

Accordingly,  after  1830  trial  trips  with  new  loco- 
motive engines  followed  hard  upon  each  other.  To- 
day it  was  the  sensation  in  Charleston  ; to-morrow  in 
Baltimore ; the  next  day  at  Albany.  Reference 
has  already  been  made  to  a cut  representing  the  ex- 
cursion train  of  March  5th,  1831,  on  the  South  Caro- 
lina Railroad.  There  is,  however,  a much  more 
familiar  picture  of  a similar  trip  made  on  the  9th  of 
August  of  the  same  year  from  Albany  to  Schenectady, 
over  the  Mohawk  Valley  road.  This  sketch,  more- 
over, was  made  at  the  time  and  on  the  spot  by  Mr.  W. 
H.  Brown,  whose  book  has  already  been  referred  to. 
There  are  few  things  of  the  sort  more  familiar  to  the 
general  eye,  and,  either  in  shop  windows  or  in  the 


48 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


offices  of  railroad  companies,  almost  every  one  has  cu- 
riously studied  the  train,  with  its  snorting  little  engine 
and  barrels  of  pine-knots  for  fuel, — the  highly  respect- 
able looking  engineer,  standing  up  and  meditatively 
observing  his  machine,  with  all  the  dignity  inseparable 
from  a dress  coat  so  neatly  buttoned  up, — the  two 
following  coaches,  in  the  inside  of  the  first  of  which 
may  be  identified  Mr.  Thurlow  Weed,  already  a man 
of  thirty  years  of  age  and  one  of  the  political  powers  of 
the  land,  while  he  upon  the  outside  seat,  with  his  hat 
on  the  back  of  his  head,  is,  as  we  are  informed,  Mr. 
Billy  Winn,  the  penny  post  man.  The  history  of  this 
now  famous  excursion  has  been  preserved  almost  as 
minutely  as  that  of  the  more  widely  known  affair  which 
had  taken  place  at  Liverpool  just  a year  before.  The 
train  was  made  up  of  a locomotive,  the  De  Witt  Clinton , 
its  tender  and  five  or  six  passenger  coaches,  which 
were,  indeed,  nothing  but  the  bodies  of  stage  coaches 
placed  upon  trucks.  The  first  two  of  these  coaches 
were  set  aside  for  distinguished  visitors  ; thy  others 
were  surmounted  with  seats  of  plank  to  accommodate 
as  many  as  possible  of  the  great  throng  of  persons 
who  were  anxious  to  participate  in  the  trip.  Inside 
and  out  the  coaches  were  crowded  ; every  seat  was 
full.  At  Liverpool  the  start  of  the  train  was  sig- 
nalled by  the  discharge  of  a cannon  ; they  were  more 
modest  at  Albany,  where  the  conductor,  having  duly 
collected  his  tickets  by  stepping  from  platform  to 
platform  outside  the  cars,  mounted  on  the  tender  and, 
sitting  upon  the  little  seat  which  is  to  be  seen  in  the 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM . 


49 


sketch  of  the  train,  gave  the  signal  to  start  with  a tin 
horn.  What  followed  has  been  described  by  one  who 
took  part  in  the  affair: 

“ The  trucks  were  coupled  together  with  chains  or  chain- 
links,  leaving  from  two  to  three  feet  slack,  and  when  the  loco- 
motive started  it  took  up  the  slack  by  jerks,  with  sufficient  force 
to  jerk  the  passengers,  who  sat  on  seats  across  the  tops  of  the 
coaches,  out  from  under  their  hats,  and  in  stopping  they  came 
together  with  such  force  as  to  send  them  flying  from  their  seats. 

“They  used  dry  pitch-pine  for  fuel,  and  there  being  no  smoke 
or  spark-catcher  to  the  chimney  or  smoke-stack,  a volume  of 
black  smoke,  strongly  impregnated  with  sparks,  coal  and  cinders, 
came  pouring  back  the  whole  length  of  the  train.  Each  of  the 
outside  passengers  who  had  an  umbrella  raised  it  as  a protec- 
tion against  the  smoke  and  fire.  They  were  found  to  be  but 
a momentary  protection,  for  I think  in  the  first  mile  the  last  one 
went  overboard,  all  having  their  covers  burnt  off  from  the  frames, 
when  a general  melee  took  place  among  the  deck-passengers, 
each  whipping  his  neighbor  to  put  out  the  fire.  They  presented 
a very  motley  appearance  on  arriving  at  the  first  station.’ ’ 
Here  “ a short  stop  was  made,  and  a successful  experiment  tried 
to  remedy  the  unpleasant  jerks.  A plan  was  soon  hit  upon  and 
put  into  execution.  The  three  links  in  the  couplings  of  the  cars 
were  stretched  to  their  utmost  tension,  a rail,  from  a fence  in  the 
neighborhood,  was  placed  between  each  pair  of  cars  and  made 
fast  by  means  of  the  packing  yarn  from  the  cylinders.  This  ar- 
rangement improved  the  order  of  things,  and  it  was  found  to 
answer  the  purpose  when  the  signal  was  again  given  and  the 
engine  started.” 

In  spite  of  these  trifling  annoyances  the  engine, 
which  was  a little  thing  weighing  but  three  and  a 
half  tons,  accomplished  the  distance  from  Albany  to 
Schenectady  in  less  than  an  hour,  and,  during  a part 
3 


50 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


of  the  way,  ran  at  as  high  a speed  as  a mile  in  two 
minutes.  At  Schenectady  the  members  of  the  party 
refreshed  themselves,  and  then,  resuming  their  seats, 
reached  Albany  in  due  time  and  without  delay  or 
accident  of  any  kind.  In  spite  of  dilapidated  gar- 
ments and  lost  umbrellas,  the  passengers  were  on  the 
whole  well  pleased  with  their  trip,  and  in  this  respect 
at  any  rate  far  more  fortunate  than  those  who  a year 
before  had  helped  inaugurate  the  Manchester  & 
Liverpool  road. 

The  DeWitt  Clinton , as  well  as  all  the  other 
engines  used  on  the  occasions  which  have  been  de- 
scribed, were  of  American  make.  But  the  fame  of 
the  Stephenson  works  at  Newcastle-upon-Tyne  had 
crossed  the  ocean,  and  to  possess  a specimen  of  their 
products  was  the  ambition  of  every  enterprising  rail- 
road company.  As  early  as  September  1829  one 
of  their  earlier  engines, — the  Stourbridge  Lion  by 
name — had  been  landed  in  New  York  and  set  up  as 
an  object  of  curiosity  in  an  iron-yard  on  the  East 
River.  It  was  one  of  the  old  models,  however,  of 
ante-Rocket  construction,  and  was  always  regarded 
as  a failure.  Orders  for  locomotives  of  the  new  model 
were  sent  over  as  soon  as  its  success  was  demonstrated, 
and  at  about  the  time  of  the  Schenectady  excursion, 
which  has  just  been  described,  one  of  these  was 
landed  in  New  York.  Its  whole  cost,  including 
freight,  duties  and  insurance,  was  $4,869.59.  This 
“ powerful  Stephenson  locomotive/’  as  it  was  called, 
weighed  about  seven  tons ; but,  light  as  this  now 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


51 


seems,  it  was  far  too  heavy  for  the  structure  upon 
which  it  was  to  run.  Early  in  September,  however, 
it  was  placed  upon  the  tracks,  and  on  the  16th  and 
17th  made  its  trial  trips,  using  coal  for  fuel.  And 
now  another,  and  this  time  more  formal  and  brilliant 
excursion,  was  planned  in  honor  of  the  event,  and  was 
fixed  for  the  24th.  It  was  to  be  to  America  what 
the  Manchester  & Liverpool  opening  had  been  to 
England,  and  the  presence  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington 
there,  was  to  be  offset  here  by  that  of  Gen.  Scott. 
But  to  be  appreciated  this  excursion  must  be  de- 
scribed in  contemporaneous  language : 

“ The  company  consisted  of  the  Governor,  Lieutenant  Gov- 
ernor, members  of  the  Senate,  now  in  session  as  a Court  of 
Errors,  our  Senators  in  Congress,  the  Chancellor  and  Judges  of 
the  Supreme  and  District  Courts,  State  officers,  the  president  of 
the  Board  of  Assistants  and  members  of  the  Common  Council 
of  the  city  of  New  York,  the  Mayor,  Recorder  and  Corporation 
Counsel  of  the  city,  and  several  citizens  of  New  York,  Albany 
and  Schenectady. 

“ Owing  to  a defect  in  one  of  the  supply-pipes  of  the  English 
locomotive,  that  powerful  engine  was  not  brought  into  service, 
and  the  party,  having  been  delayed  in  consequence,  did  not 
leave  the  head  of  Lydius  Street  until  nearly  twelve  o’clock. 
They  then  started  with  a train  of  ten  cars,  three  drawn  by  the 
American  locomotive,  De  Witt  Clmton , and  seven  by  a single 
horse  each.  The  appearance  of  this  fine  cavalcade,  if  it  may  be 
so  called,  was  highly  imposing.  The  trip  was  performed  by  the 
locomotive  in  forty-six  minutes,  and  by  the  cars  drawn  by  horses 
in  about  an  hour  and  a quarter.  From  the  head  of  the  plane, 
about  a quarter  of  a mile  from  Schenectady,  the  company  were 
conveyed  in  carriages  to  Davis’s  Hotel,  where  they  were  joined 


U.  OF  ILL  LIB. 


*2 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


by  several  citizens  of  Schenectady,  and  partook  of  a dinner 
that  reflected  credit  upon  the  proprietor  of  that  well  known  es- 
tablishment. Among  the  toasts  offered  was  one  which  has  been 
verified  to  the  letter,  viz.  : ‘ The  Buffalo  Railroad — may  we  soon 
breakfast  in  Utica,  dine  in  Rochester,  and  sup  with  our  friends 
on  Lake  Erie  !”  After  dinner  the  company  repaired  to  the 
head  of  the  plane,  and  resumed  their  seats  for  the  return  to 
Albany.  It  was  an  imposing  spectacle/’ 

All  this  took  place  during  the  summer  of  1831, 
and  it  was  only  during  that  very  summer,  when  the 
locomotive  was  already  an  established  fact,  a working 
agent  in  at  least  two  of  her  sister  States,  that  Mas- 
sachusetts aroused  herself  to  a consciousness  that 
something  unusual  had  taken  place.  Then  at  last 
that  corporation  was  chartered  which  subsequently, 
five  years  later,  opened  for  public  use  the  first  steam 
railroad  regularly  planned  and  constructed  as  such 
within  the  limits  of  the  State.  Such  an  apparent 
apathy  is  not  very  explicable.  Not  only  the  Quincy 
railway,  but  the  Middlesex  canal  as  well,  had  been 
the  first  things  of  the  kind  brought  to  a successful 
completion  in  America.  Just  at  this  time,  also,  the 
manifest  success  of  the  Erie  canal  had  given  a new 
and  portentous  significance  to  the  Berkshire  hills, 
causing  them  to  throw  a dark  shadow  over  the 
future  of  Massachusetts.  They  seemed  stationed  on 
the  western  border  of  the  State,  an  insuperable  bar- 
rier against  which  the  eastward  tide  of  commerce 
struck  and  then  with  a deflected  course  flowed  quiet- 
ly in  the  direction  of  New  York.  Either  in  some  way 
that  barrier  must  be  overcome  or  the  material  pro- 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


53 


gress  of  the  State  would  in  the  future  be  seriously 
threatened.  So  much  was  obvious.  Before  the  year 
1826  this  difficult  problem  had  already  occupied  the 
attention  both  of  the  public  and  of  the  legislature. 
A commission  had  been  appointed  to  survey  a canal 
route  from  tide  water  at  Boston  to  the  Connecticut, 
and  thence  to  some  point  in  the  State  of  New  York, 
near  where  the  Erie  canal  emptied  into  the  Hudson. 
The  report  of  this  commission  was  submitted  by  Gov. 
Lincoln  to  the  legislature  in  January  1826,  and  to- 
day, after  the  lapse  of  more  than  fifty  years,  the 
document  has  a peculiar  interest  and  significance. 

The  survey  was  made  by  Col.  Loammi  Baldwin, 
a civil  engineer  who  has  left  his  mark  cut  deep  on  the 
Massachusetts  system  of  internal  improvements. 
There  was  no  good  route,  and  so  he  fixed  on  what 
has  since  become  well  known  as  the  Hoosac  Tun- 
nel line  as  being  the  least  bad.  Accompanying  the 
report  of  1826  is  a map  made  by  Col.  Baldwin  upon 
which  is  laid  down  a canal-tunnel  exactly  where  the 
railroad  tunnel  now  is.  This  canal-tunnel  project  was 
adopted  by  Col.  Baldwin  as  a dreadful  alternative  to 
a system  of  locks  crossing  the  mountains  at  the  same 
point.  Not  that  he  considered  the  lock  scheme  im- 
practicable ; on  the  contrary,  he  demonstrated  in  his 
report  its  perfect  feasibility  on  paper  He  objected  to 
it  solely  on  the  score  of  expense.  He  accordingly  had 
recourse  to  the  cheaper  expedient  of  a tunnel,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  estimate  its  cost.  That  long  forgotten  esti- 
mate is  now  one  of  the  curiosities  of  engineering  litera- 


54 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


ture.  It  was  made,  be  it  remembered,  in  the  early 
days  before  tunnelling  had  become  a science,  and 
when  the  whole  work  would  necessarily  have  been 
done  by  hand-drilling  and  without  the  aid  of  any 
explosive  more  powerful  than  gunpowder.  In 
making  his  estimate  Col.  Baldwin,  as  an  engineei 
of  character  having  a reputation  at  stake,  was 
extremely  cautious.  He  said,  “in  a tunnel,  four 
miles  in  length,  of  the  size  named,  there  will  be 
211,200  cubic  yards  of  stone  to  excavate,  which 
at  $4.25  per  cubic  yard,  amounts  to  $920,832.” 
But  this  he  took  pains  to  state  was  “ beyond  a 
doubt  ; the  highest  price  ” having  been  assumed. 
Even  at  the  time,  this  conclusion,  to  which  sub- 
sequent bitter  experience  has  lent  a grim  humor, 
did  not  pass  unchallenged.  A writer  in  the  Bos- 
ton Courier , for  instance,  calculated  that,  on  the 
data  given  in  the  report,  it  would  take  fifty-two 
years  and  nineteen  days  to  finish  the  tunnel.  The 
present  Hoosac  Tunnel  was  in  fact  finished  a little 
over  fifty  years  from  the  time  when  this  report  was 
laid  before  the  Legislature  ; but,  instead  of  having 
proved  “ not  more  difficult  than  the  cut  through  the 
‘ Mountain  Ridge  ’ on  the  Erie  canal,”  the  expense 
of  which  per  cubic  yard  had  been  $1.75,  each  new 
difficulty  which  developed  itself  was  overcome  only 
to  make  way  for  another,  until  the  ultimate  expense 
was  about  $20  per  cubic  yard,  and  the  total  cost  some 
ten  times  the  original  estimate. 

Naturally  enough,  however,  nothing  was  done  in 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


55 


consequence  of  Col.  Baldwin’s  report  towards  extend- 
ing the  Erie  canal  to  a connection  with  tide-water  at 
Boston.  That  such  an  idea  should  ever  have  been 
gravely  entertained  seems  now  almost  beyond  belief. 
Yet  there,  on  file  among  the  public  documents  of 
that  day,  is  the  record  showing  that  sane  men  actu- 
ally dreamed  that  water  could  be  made  to  flow  over 
the  Berkshire  hills  so  as  to  compete  with  the  un- 
taxed current  of  the  Hudson  ! Four  years  more 
passed  by  without  contributing  anything  to  the  solu- 
tion of  the  problem.  In  October  1829,  however,  the 
crucial  test  at  Rainhill  gave  a new  direction  to  men’s 
thoughts  in  other  places  than  in  England.  Nathan 
Hale  at  that  time  edited  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser , 
and  he  had  also  been  one  of  the  commissioners  under 
whom  Col.  Baldwin  had  made  his  survey.  An  editor 
of  a school  which  has  long  since  passed  away,  he 
not  only  occupied  a prominent  position  in  the  busi- 
ness circles  of  the  day,  but  by  force  of  individual 
character  he  exercised  through  his  paper  a wide  and 
useful  influence.  The  Advertiser  was  Nathan  Hale; 
and,  as  regarded  this  question,  Nathan  Hale  moved 
in  the  front  rank  of  progress.  And  now  in  1829  the 
Advertiser  reproduced  day  after  day  every  detail 
of  the  Rainhill  experiments  and  spread  them  be- 
fore the  people  of  Massachusetts  with  all  possible 
emphasis.  The  result  was  immediate.  The  ses- 
sions of  the  Massachusetts  legislature  were  then 
held  in  the  spring  and  early  summer,  and  occupied 
about  as  many  weeks  as  they  now  do  months.  The 


56 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


following  June,  in  response  as  it  were  to  the  Rainhill 
challenge  and  before  the  Manchester  & Liverpool  road 
was  yet  open  to  traffic,  a number  of  charters  were 
granted  to  corporations  with  all  necessary  powers  to 
construct  railroads  on  specified  routes.  In  those  days, 
however,  the  science  of  railroad  financiering  had  not 
been  developed  to  the  degree  of  excellence  which  it 
has  since  attained.  The  first  condition  to  an  enterprise 
was  the  actual  raising  of  money  to  carry  it  out.  While 
capitalists  were  timid,  legislatures  were  cautious.  A 
tedious  contest,  therefore,  ensued  between  the  two. 
On  the  one  hand,  those  who  proposed  to  bujld  the 
roads  insisted  on  a guarantee  of  exclusive  railroad 
rights  between  the  points  designated  in  their  charters  ; 
on  the  other  hand,  the  legislature  refused  to  concede 
any  such  monopoly.  At  last,  however,  in  the  case 
of  a single  road,  that  between  Boston  and  Lowell,  the 
exclusive  concession  asked  for  was  granted  for  a term 
of  years.  Accordingly  in  this  case  the  charter  was 
accepted,  the  company  speedily  organized  and  books 
of  subscription  opened. 

In  November  1830  accounts  came  across  the  ocean 
of  the  successful  opening  of  the  Manchester  & Liver- 
pool road,  and  again  Mr.  Hale  reproduced  them  in 
detail.  The  schoolmaster  was  abroad.  He  was 
busily  at  work  between  Liverpool  and  Manchester,  and 
the  Advertiser  kept  his  instructions  before  the  eyes 
of  the  people  at  home.  Consequently,  in  June  1831, 
two  more  roads  were  incorporated  by  the  next  legis- 
lature, one  of  which,  the  Boston  & Providence,  still 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


57 


preserves  its  individuality  and  its  original  name.  The 
boards  of  direction  of  these  several  roads  were  made 
up  of  the  most  respectable  and  best  known  citizens 
of  Boston.  Patrick  T.  Jackson  was  president  of  the 
Lowell  company;  T.  B.  Wales  of  the  Providence,  and 
Nathan  Hale  of  the  Worcester.  There  is  something 
very  interesting  and  attractive  in  those  days  of  small 
things.  To  men  of  the  present  time,  accustomed  to 
corporations  which  operate  thousands  of  miles  of 
road,  which  yearly  carry  millions  of  tons  of  freight 
and  tens  of  millions  of  passengers,  while  they  wield 
hundreds  of  millions  of  capital, — to  men  accus- 
tomed to  the  presence  of  these  leviathans,  the  little 
original  roads,  the  longest  of  which  was  but  fifty  miles, 
seem  little  more  than  toys.  They  were,  however,  the 
beginning  of  great  things.  We  to-day  are  familiar  with 
the  names  of  enterprises  which  stretch  out  into  what 
was  then  the  undiscovered  West,  and  the  fabulous 
East.  We  can,  whenever  we  please,  read  the  last  quo- 
tation of  stocks  representing  a property  lying  on  the 
shores  of  the  Euphrates  or  among  the  steppes  and 
gorges  of  the  Rocky  or  Ural  Mountains.  We  have 
tunnelled  the  Alps  and  bridged  the  Mississippi.  These 
great  accomplished  facts,  however,  only  make  the 
fresh,  new  impressions  with  which  our  fathers  viewed 
the  gradual  completion  of  the  little  original  lines  more 
quaint  and  more  interesting.  The  gossip,  as  it  were, 
of  those  days  is  by  no  means  the  least  attractive 
thing  about  them. 

The  Lowell  was  the  first  organized  of  the  Mass- 


58 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


achusetts  roads,  as  well  as  the  first  upon  which 
the  work  of  construction  was  actually  begun,  though 
the  Boston  & Providence  was  the  first  completed.  But 
it  was  upon  the  Worcester  road,  and  towards  the  lat- 
ter part  of  March,  1834,  that  the  first  locomotive  ever 
used  in  Massachusetts  was  set  in  motion.  On  the  24th 
of  the  month  Mr.  Hale  advised  the  readers  of  the 
Advertiser  that  “ the  rails  are  laid,  from  Boston  to 
Newton,  a distance  of  nine  or  ten  miles,  to  which 
place  it  is  proposed  to  run  the  passenger  cars  as  soon 
as  two  locomotives  shall  be  in  readiness,  so  as  to  en- 
sure regularity.  One  locomotive,  called  the  Meteor , 
has  been  partially  tried  and  will  probably  be  in  readi- 
ness in  a few  days;  the  second,  called  the  Rocket , is 
waiting  the  arrival  of  the  builder  for  subjecting  it  to 
a trial,  and  the  third  it  is  hoped  will  be  ready  by  the 
first  of  May.”  The  last  named  locomotive,  the  Rocket , 
was  built  by  the  Stephensons  at  Newcastle-upon- 
Tyne,  and  “the  builder”  whose  arrival  was  looked 
for  must  have  been  an  English  engineer  sent  out  to 
superintend  the  work  of  putting  it  in  operation.  No 
allusion  is  made  in  the  papers  to  the  first  trial  of 
these  locomotives,  but  we  have  the  impressions 
which  one  who  claims  to  have  been  an  eye-witness 
of  it  long  afterwards  gave  : — 

“ The  Boston  & Worcester  Railroad  Company  imported  from 
Newcastle-upon-Tyne  one  of  George  Stephenson’s  locomotives, 
small  in  stature  but  symmetrical  in  every  particular,  and  finished 
with  the  exactness  of  a chronometer.  Placed  upon  the  track, 
its  driver,  who  came  with  it  from  England,  stepped  upon  the 
platform  with  almost  the  airs  of  a juggler  or  a professor  of  chem- 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


59 


istry,  placed  his  hand  upon  the  lever,  and  with  a slight  move  of 
it  the  engine  started  at  a speed  worthy  of  the  companion  of  the 
Rocket  amid  the  shouts  and  cheers  of  the  multitude.  It  gave 
me  such  a shock,  that  my  hair  seemed  to  start  from  the  roots, 
rather  than  to  stand  on  end.” 

On  the  4th  of  April,  a Friday  by  the  way,  a 
locomotive  was  first  employed  on  a gravel  train,  upon 
which  occasion,  as  the  Advertiser  the  next  day 
assured  its  readers,  “ the  engine  worked  with  ease, 
was  perfectly  manageable,  and  showed  power  enough 
to  work  at  any  desirable  speed/'  Three  days  later, 
on  Monday,  7th,  we  are  informed  that  a locomo- 
tive ran  on  the  railroad  for  the  first  time,  “ as  far  as 
Davis’  tavern  in  Newton,  a distance  of  eight  or  nine 
miles,  accompanied  by  a part  of  the  directors  and 
fifty  or  sixty  other  persons,  for  the  purpose  of  making 
trial  of  the  engine  and  examination  of  the  road. 
The  party  stopped  several  times  for  various  purposes 
on  the  way  out.  They  returned  in  thirty-nine 
minutes,  including  a stop  of  about  six  minutes  for 
the  purpose  of  attaching  five  cars  loaded  with  earth. 
The  engine  travelled  with  ease  at  the  rate  of  twenty 
miles  an  hour.”  The  next  day  a larger  party  went 
over  the  ground,  the  directors  inviting  about  one 
hundred  and  thirty  gentlemen  on  the  excursion. 
It  would  not  appear  to  have  been  a very  successful 
affair,  for,  “ after  proceeding  a short  distance,  their 
progress  was  interrupted  by  the  breaking  of  a con- 
necting-rod between  two  of  the  cars.  This  accident 
caused  a considerable  delay,  and  unfortunately  the 


6o 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


same  accident  occurred  three  or  four  times  during 
the  excursion.”  So,  after  a short  stop  at  Newton, 
the  party  came  back,  quite  cross  apparently,  and  did 
not  get  home  until  half  past  six  in  the  evening. 
On  the  15th  of  the  month  a yet  larger  party, 
consisting  of  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  ladies 
and  gentlemen  in  six  cars,  went  out  to  Newton  and 
back,  making  the  return  trip  in  less  than  half  an 
hour.  The  cars  began  to  run  regularly  next  day, 
making  two  trips  each  way  to  Newton  and  back, 
leaving  Boston  at  10  A.  M.  and  at  3.30  P.  M.  The 
regular  passenger  railroad  service  in  Massachusetts 
dates,  therefore,  from  the  16th  of  May  1834.  Al- 
ready, four  days  before,  there  had  appeared  in  the 
advertising  columns  of  Mr.  Hale’s  paper  a new  form 
of  notice.  At  the  head  was  a rude  cut  of  a locomo- 
tive and  part  of  a train  of  cars, — the  cars  being  of 
the  old  stagecoach  pattern,  mounted  high  on  wheels 
with  spokes  in  them,  and  divided  into  compartments 
which  were  entered  through  doors  at  the  sides.  The 
brakemen,  sitting  on  a sort  of  coach  boxes,  regulated 
the  speed  by  the  pressure  of  their  feet  on  levers  just  as 
is  still  done  with  wagons  on  hilly  roads.  The  notice 
was  headed  “ Boston  & Worcester  Railroad  ” and 
read  as  follows  : 

“The  passenger  cars  will  continue  to  run  daily  from  the 
depot  near  Washington  St.,  to  Newton,  6 o’clock  and  10  o’clock 
A.  M.  and  at  3^  o’clock  P.  M.,  and 

“ Returning,  leave  Newton  at  7,  and  a quarter  past  11  A.  M., 
and  a quarter  before  5 P.  M. 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


6l 


“ Tickets  for  the  passage  either  way  may  be  had  at  the  Ticket 
Office,  No.  617  Washington  St.,  price  thirty-seven  and  a half 
cents  each  ; and  for  the  return  passage,  of  the  Master  of  the 
cars,  Newton. 

“ By  order  of  the  President  and  Directors. 

“ F.  A.  Williams,  Clerk.’" 

Curiously  enough  the  issue  of  the  very  next  day 
contains  this  editorial  notice  : 

“ History  of  the  United  States.  We  understand  that  George 
Bancroft  Esq.  of  Northampton,  has  been  for  a long  time  en- 
gaged in  the  preparation  of  a history  of  the  United  States,  the 
first  volume  of  which  is  nearly  ready  for  publication.  Mr.  Ban- 
croft has  been  long  known  to  the  public  as  a scholar  of  distin- 
guished talent,  and  diversified  attainments  ; and  there  is  every 
reason  to  believe  that  his  work  will  be  equally  honorable  to 
himself  and  to  the  literary  reputation  of  the  country.  He  has 
qualified  himself  for  the  task  by  a very  diligent  investigation  of 
authorities,  and  a resort  to  the  most  authentic  sources,  in  order 
to  render  his  history  no  less  valuable  as  a repertory  of  well  as- 
certained facts,  than  it  will  be  spirited  and  interesting  as  a 
narrative.” 

It  would  certainly  be  no  easy  matter  to  hit  upon 
any  incident  which  could  more  forcibly  illustrate  the 
briefness  of  the  time  within  which  the  whole  railroad 
development  has  been  compressed.  Mr.  Bancroft  is 
still  at  work  on  his  history.  The  consecutive  labor 
of  one  literary  life  time  covers,  therefore,  the  entire 
period.  The  later  volumes  of  Bancroft’s  history  are 
still  unpublished ; yet  when  the  earliest  railroad 
train  was  run  in  New  England  the  first  volume  was 
just  issuing  from  the  press. 

Partially  opened  to  travel  in  May,  the  Boston  & 


62 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


Worcester  road  was  by  the  end  of  June  finished  as 
far  as  Needham,  and  on  the  7th  of  July  it  was 
formally  opened  to  that  point;  when  “ the  stock- 
holders and  a number  of  other  gentlemen,  to  the 
number  of  about  two  hundred  in  all,  by  invitation  of 
the  directors,  made  an  excursion  to  Needham,  in  eight 
passenger  cars,  drawn  by  the  new  locomotive  Yan- 
kee, . . The  excursion  was  pleasant,  and  the  party 
appeared  to  enjoy  the  ride,  and  the  beautiful  scenery 
which  is  presented  to  view  on  different  parts  of  the 
route.”  The  further  extension  to  Hopkinton  was 
completed  by  September,  and  so  on  the  20th  of 
that  month  another  excursion  of  some  two  hundred 
in  number  went  out  from  Boston  in  seven  of  the  com- 
pany’s largest  passenger  cars  drawn  by  the  locomotive 
Yankee , and  duly  celebrated  the  occasion.  “ They 
started  off”  as  the  Advertiser  of  the  following  day 
stated,  “ at  a rapid  and  steady  pace.  The  weather 
was  unusually  fine,  and  the  sweetness  of  the  atmos- 
phere, the  rapidity  of  the  motion,  and  the  beauty  and 
novelty  of  the  scenery  which  was  successively  pre- 
sented to  view,  appeared  to  produce  in  all  the 
party  an  agreeable  exhilaration  of  spirits.”  At 
Framingham  the  excursionists  were  met  by  John 
Davis,  then  Governor  of  the  Commonwealth,  by 
ex-Governor  Lincoln  and  other  gentlemen  from 
Worcester,  who  got  upon  the  train  and  went  with 
it  to  Hopkinton,  where  it  arrived  at  half  past  three 
o’clock  and  was  received  with  a salute  of  artillery, 
the  cheers  of  the  populace  and  an  address  from  the 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


63 


village  authorities  ; after  which,  under  escort  of  a 
company*  of  riflemen,  the  whole  party  went  to  Cap- 
tain Stone’s  tavern,  where  a collation  had  been  pro- 
vided. “ While  the  party  were  at  table  the  ladies 
were  invited  to  take  seats  in  the  cars,  and  the  military 
with  their  band  of  music  to  take  a stand  upon  the 
tops  of  the  cars,  where  they  were  formed  in  sections. 
In  this  manner  they  made  an  excursion  of  several 
miles  down  the  road  and  back,  which  they  appeared 
to  enjoy  highly.  As  they  returned,  the  military  on 
the  tops  of  the  cars  approached  the  hotel  with  arms 
presented  and  music  playing.”  Then  followed 
speeches  from  Governor  Davis  and  Governor  Lin- 
coln, and  presently,  at  quarter  after  five,  the  party 
resumed  their  seats  in  the  train  and  safely  returned 
to  Boston.  The  next  day  the  train  service  was  ex- 
tended to  Hopkinton. 

A similar  party  which  left  Boston  on  the  15th  of 
November  in  honor  of  the  completion  of  the  road  as 
far  as  Westborough  were  not  so  fortunate  as  the  Hop- 
kinton excursionists.  They  started  at  eleven  o’clock, 
but  were  delayed  for  some  time  at  Needham  from  a 
cause  which  reads  strange  enough  now — head  winds. 
The  road  had  but  one  track,  and  it  was  arranged  that 
the  excursion  train  should  at  Needham  meet  and  pass 
another  train  on  its  way  to  Boston.  It  was  autumn, 
and  there  was  a gale  blowing  from  the  east,  so  that  the 
locomotive  Meteor  had  been  delayed  in  its  up  passage 
“ by  a strong  head  wind,”  and  consequently  could  not 
return  on  time.  After  a due  amount  of  waiting  the 


64 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


excursionists,  however,  lost  their  patience  and  de- 
termined to  proceed.  They  accordingly  did  so ; but 
when  they  had  cautiously  crept  along  for  about  four 
miles  they  met  the  belated  Meteor  coming  down 
upon  them  before  the  wind.  There  was  nothing  for 
it  but  to  take  the  back  track  to  Needham,  and  there 
get  out  of  its  way.  This  was  done,  and  in  doing  it  so 
much  time  was  consumed  that  the  train  did  not  reach 
Westborough  until  two  o’clock, — having  accomplished 
thirty-two  miles  in  the  space  of  three  hours.  Once 
at  Westborougli,  however,  the  party  proceeded  to 
celebrate  with  a dinner  and  speeches  after  the  usual 
fashion.  The  local  authorities  welcomed  the  direc- 
tors with  an  address,  to  which  Mr.  Hale  replied.  At 
the  close  of  his  remarks  he  ventured  to  say,  in  refer- 
ence to  the  railroad,  that,  “ some  of  them  hoped  to 
see  this  work  of  improvement  extended  much  further 
— to  behold  the  day  when  the  city  of  Boston  would  be 
placed  within  an  afternoon’s  ride  of  the  rich  valley  of 
the  Connecticut  River,  and  even  when  the  banks  of 
the  Hudson  would  be  brought  within  a day’s  journey 
of  the  metropolis  of  the  commonwealth.”  He  con- 
cluded by  expressing  a wish  that  they  might  all  live  to 
see  these  anticipations  realized.  He  himself  cer- 
tainly did  live  to  see  them  realized  ; for  the  road  was 
formally  opened  from  Boston  to  Albany  in  December, 
1841,  just  seven  years  from  the  time  at  which  he 
spoke,  and  before  his  death  in  1863  the  question  was 
already,  not  of  connecting  Boston  with  Albany,  but 
the  seaboard  of  the  Atlantic  with  that  of  the  Pacific. 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


65 


Among  the  other  speakers  at  Westborough  were 
Gov.  Davis  and  both  of  the  Everetts,  Alexander  and 
Edward.  A Mr.  P.  P.  F.  De  Grand  was  also  there, 
a French  emigrant  of  the  old  type,  long  resident  in 
Boston,  whose  name  was  very  closely  connected  with 
the  early  history  of  Massachusetts  railroad  develop- 
ment. Indeed  Mr.  De  Grand  was  at  times  almost  the 
moving  spirit  of  the  first  enterprises,  and  it  was  his 
wont  energetically  to  refer  to  the  Worcester  rail- 
road as  being  a forty-four  mile  extension  of  Boston 
Long  Wharf.  During  the  periods  of  discouragement 
which,  a few  years  later,  marked  certain  stages  of  the 
construction  of  the  Western  road,  connecting  Worces- 
ter with  Albany, — when  both  money  and  courage 
seemed  almost  exhausted, — Mr.  De  Grand  never  for  a 
moment  faltered.  He  might  almost  be  said  to  have 
then  had  Western  railroad  on  the  brain.  Among 
other  things,  he  issued  a certain  circular  which 
caused  much  amusement  and  not  improbably  some 
scandal  among  the  more  precise.  The  Rev.  S.  K. 
Lothrop,  then  a young  man,  had  preached  a sermon 
in  Brattle  Street  church,  which  attracted  a good  deal 
of  attention,  on  the  subject  of  the  moral  and  Chris- 
tianizing influence  of  railroads.  Mr.  De  Grand 
thought  he  saw  his  occasion,  and  he  certainly  availed 
himself  of  it.  He  at  once  had  a circular  printed,  a copy 
of  which  he  sent  to  every  clergyman  in  Massachu- 
setts, suggesting  the  propriety  of  a discourse  on  “ the 
moral  and  Christianizing  influence  of  railroads  in 
general,  and  of  the  Western  railroad  in  particular.” 


66 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


To  return,  however,  to  the  Boston  & Worcester 
road.  It  was  completed  in  June,  1835,  just  four  years 
after  it  had  been  chartered.  It  ran  through  a far 
from  difficult  country  and  was  but  forty-four  miles 
in  length  ; but  in  those  days  eleven  miles  a year  were 
looked  upon  as  quite  a rapid  rate  of  railroad  construc- 
tion. At  last,  on  the  3d  of  July,  a locomotive  with 
one  passenger  car,  in  which  were  a few  of  the  directors, 
passed  over  the  line  from  end  to  end,  and  on  Saturday, 
the  4th,  the  four  engines,  which  constituted  the  entire 
motive  power  of  the  company,  passed  twice  each  way 
between  Boston  and  Worcester, — two  engines,  draw- 
ing eleven  cars,  leaving  the  opposite  ends  of  the  road 
at  the  same  time.  During  the  day  over  fifteen  hun- 
dred passengers  were  carried.  In  reality  the  opening 
of  those  first  completed  railroad  lines, — for  the  Wor- 
cester was  the  third  of  the  original  lines  all  opened 
within  one  month, — was  an  event  to  be  celebrated, — 
an  event  second  in  importance  to  none  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  State.  The  formal  opening  took  place 
two  days  later,  on  the  6th,  which,  as  hardly  needs 
to  be  said,  was  a great  day  for  Worcester,  then 
a quiet  country  town  of  six  thousand  inhabitants. 
At  ten  o’clock  in  the  morning  a special  train,  con- 
sisting of  twelve  cars,  drawn  by  two  locomotives 
and  carrying  some  three  hundred  officials  and  in- 
vited guests,  left  Boston  and  reached  Worcester  at 
about  one,  where  its  arrival  was  welcomed  by  a salute 
of  artillery  and  a general  ringing  of  bells.  Charles 
Allen,  afterwards  a member  of  Congress  and  Chief 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM . 


67 


Justice  of  the  Superior  Court  of  the  State,  was  chair- 
man of  the  committee  of  arrangements,  and  the  pro- 
gramme included  a procession  and  dinner  at  the  Town- 
Hall.  This,  as  usual,  was  followed  by  a great  many 
toasts  and  a considerable  effusion  of  after-dinner  elo- 
quence. Mr.  Hale  spoke,  of  course,  as  president  of 
the  road.  He  was  followed  by  Edward  Everett,  as 
Governor  of  the  Commonwealth  ; who,  the  report 
says,  made  a speech  “ of  uncommon  beauty  and  in- 
terest, interspersed  with  pleasant  anecdote  and  elo- 
quent remark.  It  was  one  of  the  happiest  efforts  of 
the  distinguished  gentleman.” 

Of  greater  interest  to  posterity,  however,  were  the 
more  common  place  remarks,  from  a rhetorical  point 
of  view,  of  Mr.  Henry  Williams  of  Boston,  one  of  the 
directors  as  well  as  the  clerk  of  the  company.  He 
took  occasion  to  allude  44  with  much  feeling  to  the 
difficulties  with  which  the  enterprise  had  to  contend 
at  the  outset  without  the  aid  of  the  capitalists,  who 
hesitated  to  embark  in  so  perilous  an  adventure. 

‘ The  work  was  commenced  and  has  been  completed/ 
said  Mr.  Williams,  4 by  the  middling  class  in  the  com- 
munity/ ” For  the  rest  the  toasts  on  this  occasion 
were  of  much  the  usual  character,  and  now,  after  the 
lapse  of  more  than  forty  years,  they  have  certainly 
lost  what  little  of  flavor  they  may  perchance  once  have 
had,  and  read  thin  and  flat  enough.  One  only  among 
them  has  a curious  sound,  being  strongly  suggestive  of 
the  familiar  44  tempora  mutantur  ” of  the  Latin  poet. 
It  was  offered  by  ex-Governor  Davis  and  was  in  these 


68 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


words, — “ Railroads.  We  are  willing  to  be  rode 
hard  by  such  monopolies.,,  On  that  day  certainly  no 
anticipation  of  Granger  agitations  or  of  “ Potter  ” laws 
was  present  in  the  mind  of  Governor  Davis,  or  of  any 
one  else.  At  least  no  such  forebodings  troubled  the 
festivities  of  the  occasion,  and  a prophet  who  would 
then  have  dared  to  predict  that  within  the  lifetime  of 
any  there  gathered  together  a political  party  would 
rise  up  with  whom  the  indiscriminate  denunciation  of 
those  who  built  railroads  as  “ vampires  ” and  those 
who  operated  railroads  as  “ the  robber  barons  of  mod- 
ern civilization  ” was  the  breath  of  life, — assuredly 
that  prophet  of  evil  would  have  found  himself  com- 
pelled to  face  a storm  of  jeers  and  contumely.  But 
no  such  bird  of  ill-omen  presented  himself,  and  at 
eight  o'clock  that  evening  the  safe  and  uneventful 
return  home  of  the  Boston  party  brought  the  cele- 
bration to  a close. 

Meanwhile  those  who  had  the  construction  of  the 
other  roads  in  charge  were  not  idle.  The  Boston  & 
Providence  was  fast  approaching  completion,  and  on 
Tuesday,  June  2d,  a party  went  over  it  from  end  to 
end.  The  following  account  of  the  excursion,  which 
appeared  in  a Providence  paper  a few  days  later,  has 
rather  acquired  than  lost  interest  through  the  lapse 
of  forty  years.  The  party  set  out  from  Providence 
upon  the  invitation  of  the  board  of  directors  : 

“ It  was  in  contemplation  to  have  taken  the  new  engine 
that  had  arrived  from  Philadelphia  only  the  day  before,  but  some 
of  her  pipes  were  not  in  order,  and  we  finally  set  off  from  the 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM.  69 

depot  at  India  Point,  at  a quarter  before  one  o’clock  in  the  af- 
ternoon, with  two  cars,  each  propelled  by  two  horse  power. 

“ The  application  of  horses  afforded  us  a most  fortunate 
opportunity  for  inspecting  the  grand  structure  over  which  we 
passed.  The  road  . . has  been  laid  to  endure  with  the  ever- 

lasting hills,  and  is  finished  with  a neatness  very  gratifying  to 
the  eye.  The  viaduct  at  Canton,  though  yet  unfinished,  is  a 
stupendous  work.  A view  of  it  many  times  repays  the  trouble 
of  passing  round.  The  excavations  and  embankments  in  Can- 
ton are  also  worthy  of  minute  attention  ; they  testify  in  strong 
language,  to  man’s  dominion  over  nature,  and  his  ability  to 
overcome  any  obstacle  to  any  undertaking  that  is  not  either 
morally  or  physically  absurd.  The  project  of  cutting  through 
these  rocky  heights  and  crossing  the  valley  of  the  river  by  the 
viaduct  was  a very  bold  one.  A hesitating  mind  would  have 
surmounted  them  by  stationary  engines,  or  some  less  formida- 
ble way.  But  any  other  mode  would  have  detracted  very  much 
from  the  facilities  which  give  value  to  such  a road. 

“ The  road  has  been  constructed  under  the  direction  of 
Major  McNeil,  and  it  will  stand  for  ages,  an  enduring  monument 
of  the  high  talents  and  high  attainments  of  its  accomplished 
engineer. 

“ Among  the  curiosities  on  the  way  is  a bog  in  Mansfield 
where  the  road  sunk,  during  its  formation,  to  the  depth  of 
forty  feet ; and  it  is  also  a curious  fact  that  sixteen  miles  and 
a half  of  this  road  are  on  a perfectly  straight  line. 

“ After  examining  the  work  at  Canton  we  took  the  engine 
at  twenty  minutes  past  five,  and  were  landed  at  West  Boston  at 
about  six  o’clock.  The  party  accompanied  the  directors  to  their 
depot  at  the  Tremont  House,  and  enjoyed  their  overflowing  hos- 
pitality with  keen  appetites  and  grateful  hearts.” 

The  viaduct  at  Canton,  by  the  way,  the  bold 
conception  and  fine  construction  of  which  excited  so 
much  admiration  in  the  minds  of  these  excursionists, 


7 o 


THE  GENESIS  OE 


really  was  a most  creditable  piece  of  work.  When 
they  did  build,  they  built  better  in  those  days  than 
they  now  do,  and  the  passage  of  forty  years  of  con- 
stant use  has  developed  no  greater  need  for  repairs 
on  the  Canton  viaduct  than  it  has  on  the  pyramids 
of  Egypt.  That  viaduct,  also,  has  a history  of  its 
own,  curiously  illustrating  the  value  of  fatal  accidents 
as  a dynamic  force  in  railroad  development.  In  the 
earliest  surveys  of  the  route  of  the  Boston  & Provi- 
dence line,  the  deep  and  wide  ravine  through  which 
the  Neponset  river  flows  between  the  elevated  hills 
of  Canton  had  presented  itself  as  a serious  obstacle 
in  the  way  of  the  enterprise.  Closely  following  the 
precedents  already  established  in  the  case  of  the  coal 
tramways,  both  at  home  and  abroad,  the  engineers 
at  first  proposed  to  overcome  the  difficulty  by  means 
of  inclined  planes  operated  by  stationary  engines. 
It  so  happened,  however,  that  there  already  was, 
only  a few  miles  away  and  also  close  to  the  banks  of 
the  Neponset.  an  inclined  plane  at  the  end  of  the 
Quincy  Granite  Railway.  From  motives  of  curiosity 
parties  of  gentlemen  were  in  the  custom  of  visiting 
that  work.  While  the  construction  of  the  Boston  & 
Providence  road  was  yet  undecided,  a party  of  this 
sort  was  one  day  ascending  the  Quincy  incline  when 
the  pulleys  broke,  and  the  car  on  which  the  visitors 
were  ran  backwards  down  the  grade,  throwing  them 
out  and  killing  one  of  them,  a Mr.  Gibson,  well  known 
in  Boston.  This  accident  brought  inclined  planes  into 
great  disfavor,  and  induced  the  construction  of  the 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


71 


Canton  viaduct ; just  as  invariably  since  that  time 
every  serious  railroad  accident  has  had  a direct  and 
often  most  perceptible  influence  in  bringing  about 
some  great  advance  in  railroad  construction  or  ap- 
pliances for  safety. 

To  return,  however,  to  the  party  of  excursionists 
who  visited  Boston  in  the  early  days  of  June, 
1835.  They  had  left  Providence  on  Tuesday.  On 
the  very  day  before,  another  event  of  interest  had 
taken  place  on  Long  Island  sound,  for  the  ill-fated 
steamer  Lexington , built  specially  to  run  between 
New  York  and  Providence  in  connection  with  the 
new  railroad,  had  then  made  her  trial  trip.  The  Lex- 
ington was  constructed  for  and  under  the  direction  of 
Captain  Cornelius  Vanderbilt,  who  had  not  then  ar- 
rived at  his  subsequent  title  by  courtesy  of  Commo- 
dore, but  “ whose  reputation  for  fast  boats  is,” — the 
contemporaneous  authority  goes  on  to  say, — “ so  well 
established  in  this  community.”  The  Lexington 
upon  her  trial  trip  astonished  those  on  board  of  her, 
and  the  editor  of  the  New  York  Courier  and  Enquirer, 
who  was  one  of  the  number,  thus  gave  vent  to  his 
feelings : 

“ We  were  of  the  party  who  accompanied  her  on  this  novel 
and  interesting  expedition  : and  although  the  Boston  & Provi- 
dence Railroad  is  not  yet  opened — which  event  will  shorten  the 
time  of  travelling  between  those  cities  two  hours — we  yester- 
day, breakfasted  at  Boston , left  there  at  2 A.  M.,  and  arrived 
in  this  city  off  Dry  Dock  in  eleven  hours  and  fifty -nine  min- 
utes from  Providence, — performing  the  entire  distance  in  less 


72 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


than  sixteen  hours,  and  bringing-  with  us  the  Boston  daily  papers 
of  yesterday  morning  for  the  benefit  of  our  readers  and  thosi  of 
our  cotemporaries.” 

In  other  words,  General  Webb  had  left  Boston  at 
two  in  the  morning  and  arrived  in  New  York  at  six 
o’clock  on  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  being  the 
shortest  time  which  had  ever  been  made  between 
those  two  cities.  He  then  proceeds,  in  a strain  of  en- 
thusiastic exultation  over  the  prospect  of  “ reducing 
the  time  of  overcoming  the  distance  between  New 
York  and  Boston  (250  miles)  to  fourteen  hours,”  and 
closes  with  a tribute  which,  though  offered  nearly 
half  a century  ago,  still  has  an  amusing  significance  : 

“ Other  sections  of  the  country  will  be  equally  benefited  by 
this  improvement  of  steam  navigation  by  Captain  Vanderbilt, 
and  his  name  will  in  future  be  classed  with  those  of  Fulton  and 
Stephenson,  to  the  latter  of  whom  we  owe  nearly  all  the  im- 
provements which  have  been  made  in  the  steam  engine,  since 
the  death  of  that  great  man  to  whom  the  world  is  indebted  for 
that  most  important  discovery  which  has  ever  been  made  except 
the  art  of  printing.” 

Having  given  one  side  of  the  picture;  it  is  but 
fair  to  present  the  other.  The  advent  of  railroad 
locomotion  was  not  even  in  America  hailed  by  ail  in 
a similar  spirit  of  exuberant  satisfaction.  A little 
over  a month  after  the  time  when  General  Webb 
went  from  Boston  to  New  York  in  sixteen  hours,  a 
gentleman  of  the  very  old  school,  then  in  his  sixty- 
fourth  year,  made  the  same  trip  ; and  in  his  diary 
thus  freshly  recorded  his  experience  and  sensations: 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


73 


“ July  22,  1835. — This  morning  at  nine  o'clock  I took  pas- 
sage in  a railroad  car  (from  Boston)  for  Providence.  Five  or 
six  other  cars  were  attached  to  the  locomotive,  and  uglier  boxes 
I do  not  wish  to  travel  in.  They  were  made  to  stow  away  some 
thirty  human  beings,  who  sit  cheek  by  jowl  as  best  they  can. 
Two  poor  fellows,  who  were  not  much  in  the  habit  of  making 
their  toilet,  squeezed  me  into  a corner,  while  the  hot  sun  drew 
from  their  garments  a villainous  compound  of  smells  made  up  of 
salt  fish,  tar  and  molasses.  By  and  by,  just  twelve, — only  twelve 
— bouncing  factory  girls  were  introduced,  who  were  going  on  a 
party  of  pleasure  to  Newport.  “Make  room  for  the  ladies  ! ” 
bawled  out  the  superintendent.  “ Come,  gentlemen,  jump  up 
on  the  top  ; plenty  of  room  there.”  “ I’m  afraid  of  the  bridge 
knocking  my  brains  out,”  said  a passenger.  Some  made  one 
excuse  and  some  another.  For  my  part,  I flatly  told  him  that 
since  I had  belonged  to  the  corps  of  Silver  Grays  I had  lost  my 
gallantry,  and  did  not  intend  to  move.  The  whole  twelve  were, 
however,  introduced,  and  soon  made  themselves  at  home,  suck- 
ing lemons  and  eating  green  apples.  . . . The  rich  and 

the  poor,  the  educated  and  the  ignorant,  the  polite  and  the  vul- 
gar, all  herd  together  in  this  modern  improvement  in  travelling. 
The  consequence  is  a complete  amalgamation.  Master  and 
servant  sleep  heads  and  points  on  the  cabin  floor  of  the  steamer, 
feed  at  the  same  table,  sit  in  each  other’s  laps,  as  it  were,  in  the 
cars ; and  all  this  for  the  sake  of  doing  very  uncomfortably  in 
two  days  what  would  be  done  delightfully  in  eight  or  ten.  Shall 
we  be  much  longer  kept  by  this  toilsome  fashion  of  hurrying, 
hurrying,  from  starting  (those  who  can  afford  it)  on  a journey 
with  our  own  horses,  and  moving  slowly,  surely  and  profitably 
through  the  country,  with  the  power  of  enjoying  its  beauty  and 
be  the  means  of  creating  good  inns.  Undoubtedly,  a line  of  post- 
horses  and  post-chaises  would  long  ago  have  been  established 
along  our  great  roads  had  not  steam  monopolized  everything. 

. . . Talk  of  ladies  on  board  a steamboat  or  in  a railroad  car. 
There  are  none.  I never  feel  like  a gentleman  there,  and  I can- 


4 


74 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


not  perceive  a semblance  of  gentility  in  any  one  who  makes  part 
of  the  travelling  mob.  When  I see  women  whom,  in  their  draw- 
ing-rooms or  elsewhere,  I have  been  accustomed  to  respect  and 
treat  with  every  suitable  deference, — when  I see  them,  I say, 
elbowing  their  way  through  a crowd  of  dirty  emigrants  or  low- 
bred homespun  fellows  in  petticoats  or  breeches  in  our  country, 
in  order  to  reach  a table  spread  for  a hundred  or  more,  I lose 
sight  of  their  pretentions  to  gentility  and  view  them  as  belonging 
to  the  plebeian  herd.  To  restore  herself  to  her  caste,  let  a lady 
move  in  select  company  at  five  miles  an  hour,  and  take  her  meals 

in  comfort  at  a good  inn,  where  she  may  dine  decently 

After  all,  the  old-fashioned  way  of  five  or  six  miles  with  liberty 
to  dine  decently  in  a decent  inn  and  be  master  of  one’s  move- 
ments, with  the  delight  of  seeing  the  country  and  gettingalong 
rationally,  is  the  mode  to  which  I cling,  and  which  will  be 
adopted  again  by  the  generations  of  after  times.”* 

Curiously  enough,  but  probably  as  the  result  of  a 
very  natural  spirit  of  emulation  in  those  engaged  in 
building  them,  the  three  initial  roads  of  Massachusetts, 
— the  germs  of  her  subsequent  railroad  system, — were 
all  completed  and  opened  to  traffic  within  four  weeks  of 
each  other, — the  Providence  on  the  nth  of  June,  the 
Lowell  on  the  27th  of  the  same  month,  and  theWorces- 
ter  on  the  3d  of  July.  They  were  all  well  built  roads, 
especially  that  to  Lowell,  in  the  construction  of  which 
the  Manchester  & Liverpool  precedents  had  been  so 
closely  followed  that  the  serious  error  was  committed 
of  laying  the  rails  on  stone  blocks  instead  of  wooden 
ties.  It  is,  indeed,  matter  of  curious  observation 
that  almost  uniformly  those  early  railroad  builders 

* Recollections  of  Samuel  Breck,  pp.  275-7. 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM. 


75 


made  grave  blunders,  whenever  they  tried  to  do  their 
work  peculiarly  well ; they  almost  invariably  had  after- 
wards to  undo  it.  The  Lowell  road,  for  instance, 
was  too  well  built  in  many  respects.  On  a portion 
of  its  track  the  stone  blocks,  into  which  the  oaken 
plugs  to  spike  the  rails  to  were  inserted,  were  laid  on 
a foundation  of  continuous,  parallel,  dry,  stone  walls 
running  in  trenches  under  each  line  of  rails,  and  from 
two  and  a half  to  four  feet  deep  and  a foot  and  a half 
wide.  Such  work  as  this  was  intended  to  last,  and 
doubtless  the  Boston  & Lowell  directors  thought  that 
they  had  acquitted  themselves  of  their  trust  with  a 
far  seeing  economy.  Unfortunately,  as  time  passed, 
experience  decided  the  other  way.  They  gradually 
learned  to  their  great  surprise  that  speed  without  elas- 
ticity is  always  costly ; and  to-day  the  sides  of  the  road- 
bed are  liberally  ornamented  with  those  useless  stone 
sleepers,  the  eternal  life  of  which  was  once  looked  for- 
ward to  with  confident  pride.  It  was  only  through  the 
shrewd  sense  of  its  constructing  engineer,  also,  that 
the  Boston  & Providence  company  was  saved  from 
this  same  blunder.  Captain  McNeill  had  been  sent 
abroad  to  examine  the  Manchester  & Liverpool  road. 
While  doing  so  he  not  only  had  the  sense  to  see  that 
the  objections  to  the  use  of  wood  which  existed  in 
England,  because  of  its  scarcity,  did  not  hold  good 
in  this  country,  but  he  also  with  great  sagacity  di- 
vined at  once  the  importance  of  an  elastic  road-bed. 
In  one  important  respect,  however,  the  early  railroad 
companies  enjoyed  an  enormous  advantage  over  those 


y6 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


of  to-day;  the  materials  they  used  were  as  a rule 
honestly  made.  The  original  iron  of  the  Boston  & 
Providence  weighed  fifty-five  pounds  to  the  yard  and 
would  outlast  most  modern  steel.  The  last  of  it  was 
not  taken  out  of  the  tracks  until  i860,  and  then, 
after  twenty-five  years  of  continuous  service,  it  was 
still  in  good  condition. 

The  first  epoch  of  railroad  construction  in  Massa- 
chusetts did  not,  however,  close  with  the  opening  of 
the  Boston  & Worcester  road.  On  the  contrary,  it 
rather  began  with  that  want.  It  closed  six  years  later 
— during  the  last  days  of  1841 — when  at  length  with 
hard  struggle  and  after  many  and  bitter  discour- 
agements, at  times  verging  almost  on  despair,  the 
Western  railroad  was  completed.  By  it  Boston  was 
brought  into  a close  connection  with  Albany  and  that 
great  network  of  internal  communication,  whether 
by  land  or  water,  which  there  found  an  outlet.  For 
the  time  the  construction  of  that  road  was  really  a 
great  achievement, — much  greater  than  the  subse- 
quent building  of  the  Pacific  railways.  Begun  in 
1 834,  it  was  seven  years,  covering  all  the  dreary  period 
which  followed  the  panic  of  1837,  before  it  could 
be  finished.  During  that  time  the  work  progressed 
at  an  average  rate  of  about  twenty  two  miles  a year. 
Repeatedly  it  would  have  come  to  a dead  stand-still 
had  not  the  assistance  of  the  State  been  extend  ed  to  it 
with  a liberal  hand.  Of  its  original  officers  during  the 
period  of  construction  but  one  now  survives,  Josiah 
Quincy,  then  the  younger  of  the  name,  who  was  treas- 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM 


77 


urer  of  the  corporation.  As  in  the  case  of  Mr.  De 
Grand,  the  sanguine  temper  of  Mr.  Quincy  was  then 
of  no  little  service.  During  the  too  frequently  recur- 
ring days  of  despondency  he  was  wont  to  humorously 
draw  courage  for  himself  and  his  associates  from  the 
remark  of  that  king  of  Spain  who  met  the  sugges- 
tion of  a canal  between  two  points  in  his  dominions 
with  the  dry  negative,  that  “ If  the  Almighty  had 
intended  there  should  be  navigation  between  these 
two  points,  he  would  undoubtedly  have  placed  a river 
there  ; but  it  was  not  for  a poor  mortal  like  himself 
to  improve  on  the  infinite  wisdom  of  God’s  handi- 
work.” But  in  the  case  of  the  Berkshire  hills,  as 
Mr.  Quincy  argued,  the  Almighty  had  made  a prac- 
ticable roadway,  and  hence  it  was  clear  He  meant  in 
His  wisdom  there  should  be  a railroad  built  through 
them,  and  consequently  the  road  would  be  built. 
Built  at  last  it  was,  and  its  completion  brought  to  a 
triumphant  close  the  first  epoch  of  Massachusetts 
railroad  construction.  The  State  then  had  a com- 
plete railroad  system  ; and,  in  closely  studying  the 
records  of  the  time,  it  is  curious  to  see  what  a 
revolution  the  new  power  had  already  brought 
about.  The  community  had  in  1841  fully  entered 
on  the  new  life.  Accordingly  when  the  Western 
railroad  was  at  last  opened,  though  the  event  was 
one  of  too  much  importance  to  be  passed  over  un- 
noticed, the  celebration  had  distinctly  lost  that  fresh, 
primitive  flavor  which  alone  lends  to  our  times  a 
charm  in  the  earlier  occasions.  The  opening  of  a 


THE  GENESIS  OF 


7« 

new  railroad  was  in  1841  an  old  story.  Every  one 
had  then  made  journeys  by  rail.  There  was  no  long- 
er any  novelty  about  the  thing,  and  the  orators  who 
tried  to  excite  fresh  emotions  of  wonder  by  dwelling 
on  the  well-worn  theme  began  to  find  it  very  hard 
work.  Nevertheless  on  the  27th  of  December  1841, 
the  members  of  the  Boston  city  government  started 
for  Albany,  on  what  would  now  be  termed  a “ muni- 
cipal junket.”  Among  other  invited  guests  they  took 
with  them  a delegation  from  New  Bedford.  To  these 
New  Bedford  gentlemen  was  due  on  this  occasion 
the  last  vestige  of  that  simple  wonder  which  had  al- 
ways been  so  prominent  a feature  in  the  earlier  rail- 
road celebrations.  In  order  to  lend  point  to  the  as- 
tonishing fact  that,  leaving  their  homes  in  the  morn- 
ing they  would  in  fifteen  hours  be  in  Albany,  these 
gentlemen  during  the  small  hours  of  the  day  of  their 
departure  caused  some  spermaceti  candles  to  be 
moulded.  These  they  took  with  them  on  their  trip, 
and  that  evening  the  rays  from  these  candles  illu- 
mined the  table  around  which  took  place  the  civic 
banquet  at  Albany.  But  the  Albanians  were  not  to 
be  outdone.  They  were  to  return  to  Boston  with  their 
guests  the  next  day  ; and  in  doing  so,  they  took  with 
them  a barrel  of  flour,  the  wheat  for  which  had  been 
threshed  at  Rochester  on  the  previous  Monday, — 
they  went  to  Boston  on  Wednesday — while  the  bar- 
rel itself  was  made  from  wood  which  on  the  thresh- 
ing day  had  been  growing  in  the  tree.  This  flour, 
duly  converted  into  bread,  the  authorities  of  the  two 


THE  RAILROAD  SYSTEM . 


79 


cities  and  their  invited  guests  solemnly  ate  at  a grand 
dinner  given  at  the  United  States  Hotel  in  Boston 
on  the  evening  of  December  30th,  1841.  Of  the 
toasts  and  speeches  given  utterance  toon  this  occa- 
sion there  is  little  enough  to  say.  In  them  honest 
astonishment  had  given  place  to  a mouthing  elo- 
quence. Every  one  realized  fully  the  importance 
and  the  far  reaching  consequence  of  the  event  they 
were  met  to  celebrate, — the  fire  companies  and  the 
military  were  all  paraded  and  the  air  was  filled  with 
the  strains  of  music, — but  none  the  less  it  was  all  a 
twice-told  tale.  Railroads  had  grown  to  be  com- 
monplace  affairs.  The  world  had  already  accustomed 
itself  to  the  new  conditions  of  its  existence,  and 
wholly  refused  to  gape  in  childish  wonder  at  the 
thought  of  having  accomplished  a journey  of  fifty 
miles  more  or  less  between  the  rising  and  setting  of 
even  a December  sun.  The  genesis  of  the  system 
was  complete. 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


DURING  the  last  ten  years  there  has  been  so 
much  vague  discussion  of  what  is  commonly 
known  as  the  Railroad  Problem,  that  many  people, 
and  those  by  no  means  the  least  sensible,  have  begun 
gravely  to  doubt  whether  after  all  it  is  not  a mere 
cant  phrase,  and  whether  any  such  problem  does 
indeed  exist.  Certainly  the  discussion  has  not  been 
remarkable  for  intelligence,  and  the  currency  ques- 
tion itself  has  hardly  been  more  completely  befogged 
in  clouds  of  indifferent  declamation,  poor  philosophy 
and  worse  logic.  No  fallacy  has  been  too  thin  to  pass 
current  in  it ; and  the  absolute  power  which  certain 
words  and  phrases  have  held  over  the  public  mind 
has  throughout  seemed  to  set  both  argument  and 
patience  at  defiance.  Under  these  circumstances, 
before  beginning  to  discuss  the  Railroad  Problem,  it 
might  seem  proper  to  offer  some  definition  of  what 
that  problem  is.  To  do  this  concisely  is  very  diffi- 
cult. As  an  innovating  force  the  railroad  has  made 
itself  felt  and  produced  its  problems  in  every  depart- 
ment of  civilized  life.  So  has  the  steam-engine  ; so  has 
the  newspaper  ; so  has  gunpowder.  Unlike  all  these, 
however,  the  railroad  has  developed  one  distinctive 
problem,  and  a problem  which  actively  presses  for 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


8l 


solution.  It  has  done  so  for  the  reason  that  it  has 
not  only  usurped,  in  modern  communities,  the  more 
important  functions  of  the  highway,  but  those  who 
own  it  have  also  undertaken  to  do  the  work  which 
was  formerly  done  on  the  highway.  Moreover,  as 
events  have  developed  themselves,  it  has  become  ap- 
parent that  the  recognized  laws  of  trade  operate  but 
imperfectly  at  best  in  regulating  the  use  made  of  these 
modern  thoroughfares  by  those  who  thus  both  own 
and  monopolize  them.  Consequently  the  political 
governments  of  the  various  countries  have  been  called 
upon  in  some  way  to  make  good  through  legislation 
the  deficiencies  thus  revealed  in  the  working  of  the 
natural  laws.  This  is  the  Railroad  Problem.  Thus 
stated,  it  hardly  needs  to  be  said  that  the  questions 
involved  in  its  solution  are  of  great  magnitude  and 
extreme  delicacy.  To  deal  correctly  with  them  re- 
quires a thorough  knowledge  of  intricate  economical 
laws,  superadded  to  a very  keen  insight  into  political 
habits  and  modes  of  thought.  For  not  only  is  there 
a general  railroad  problem  for  all  countries,  but  this 
problem  has  to  be  dealt  with  in  a peculiar  way  in  each 
country.  One  mode  of  treatment  will  not  do  for  all. 
'Before  discussing,  therefore,  the  form  this  problem 
has  assumed  in  America  it  will  be  well  to  briefly  re- 
view its  development,  and  the  efforts  made  to  solve 
it  elsewhere.  The  experience  of  other  countries  can 
hardly  fail  to  throw  a side  light  at  least  on  the  direc- 
tion events  are  taking  here. 

The  railroad  originated  in  England,  and  in  Eng- 
4* 


82 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


land  it  has  upon  the  whole  attained  its  highest  pres- 
ent stage  of  development.  The  English  railroad  sys- 
tem and  the  English  experience  must,  therefore,  first 
be  described.  In  one  of  the  earlier  parliamentary 
debates  on  the  subject  of  railroads  the  Duke  of 
Wellington  is  reported  to  have  said  that  in  dealing 
with  them  it  was  above  all  else  necessary  to  bear  in 
mind  the  analogy  of  the  king’s  highway.  The  re- 
mark was  certainly  characteristic,  both  of  the  indi- 
vidual and  the  race.  Without  any  careful  analysis 
to  find  out  whether  it  was  real  or  apparent  only,  the 
analogy  was  accepted  and  upon  it  was  based  that 
whole  elaborate  system  of  legislation  through  and  in 
spite  of  which  both  in  Great  Britain  and  in  America 
the  railroad  system  grew  up,  and  in  the  meshes  of 
which  it  is  now  struggling.  In  fact  the  analogy  was 
essentially  a false  one.  In  no  respect  did  the  railroad 
in  reality  resemble  the  highway,  any  more  than  the 
corporation  which  owned  and  operated  it  resembled 
the  common  carrier.  The  new  system  was  not  amen- 
able to  the  same  natural  laws  which  regulated  and 
controlled  the  operations  of  the  old  one,  and  the  more 
the  principles  and  rules  of  law  which  had  grown  out 
of  the  old  system  were  applied  to  it,  the  worse  the 
result  became.  The  acme  of  the  ludicrous  in  this 
respect  was,  however,  reached  not  in  England  but  in 
America.  In  England  the  truth  dawned  in  time 
on  the  minds  of  those  upon  whom  the  work  of 
legislation  devolved.  After  more  than  forty  years  of 
blundering  it  was  there  at  last  realized  in  1872  that 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


83 


the  railroad  system  was  a thing  sui  generis , — a vast 
and  intricate  formative  influence,  as  well  as  a material 
power,  the  growth  of  which  was  to  be  curiously 
watched  in  the  expectation  that  in  due  time  it  would 
develop  some  phase  which  again  would  call  forth 
a corresponding  development  in  the  machinery  of 
government,  through  which  its  political  and  economi- 
cal relations  with  the  community  would  be  finally 
established  on  some  rational  and  permanent  basis. 
Meanwhile  at  the  very  time  this  result  was  reached 
in  Great  Britain,  and  the  railroad  problem  conse- 
quently ceased  to  be  a matter  for  active  discussion, 
America  was  clinging  more  desperately  than  ever  to 
that  false  analogy  which  had  thus  been  finally  aban- 
doned in  the  place  where  it  originated.  Since  1872, 
even  more  than  before  that  time,  the  American  legis- 
lation has  been  inspired  by  the  theory  that  the  rail- 
road corporation  is  nothing  but  an  overgrown  com- 
mon-carrier, who  has  in  someway  got  the  monopoly 
of  a highway,  and,  being  crazed  by  sudden  and  ill- 
gotten  gains,  has  forgotten  his  proper  place  in  life  ; of 
which  he  must  forthwith  be  reminded  through  an 
exercise  of  political  power.  The  old  analogy  sug- 
gested by  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  as  mischievous  as 
it  is  false,  still  maintains  a strong  hold  on  the  legisla- 
tive mind  and  belittles  a great  question. 

Upon  it,  however,  the  whole  railroad  system  of 
Great  Britain  was  founded.  In  the  first  place,  the 
proprietor  of  the  road-bed  and  the  carrier  over  it  were 
to  be  different  persons.  Provision  in  this  respect  was 


84 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


especially  made  in  all  early  charters,  and  it  was  sup- 
posed that  the  power  of  using  the  road,  which  was 
reserved  to  all  the  world  on  certain  fixed  terms,  would 
make  impossible  any  monopoly  of  the  business  over 
it.  Experience,  of  course,  quickly  showed  how  utterly 
fallacious  this  reasoning  was.  No  glimmer  of  doubt, 
however,  as  to  the  correctness  of  the  analogy  drawn 
from  the  king’s  highway  suggested  itself  to  the  parlia- 
mentary mind.  On  the  contrary  it  was  only  the  more 
tenaciously  clung  to.  Recourse  was  had  to  a system 
of  fixed  maxima  charges,  and  the  old  tollboards  of  the 
turnpikes  were  incorporated  at  enormous  length  into 
the  new  charters  as  they  were  granted.  One  of  these, 
for  instance,  which  went  through  Parliament  in  1844, 
consisted  of  three  hundred  and  eighty-one  distinct 
sections,  in  which,  among  other  things,  it  was  pre- 
scribed that  for  the  carriage  of  a “ horse,  mule,  or  ass  ” 
the  company  might  charge  at  a rate  not  to  exceed 
three  pence  per  mile,  while  for  a calf  or  a pig  or 
“ other  small  animal,”  the  limit  was  a penny.  Nat- 
urally, this  attempt  at  regulation  proved  no  more  effi- 
cacious than  the  other ; but  it  served  its  turn  until  yet 
another  theory,  that  of  parallel  highways  controlled 
by  competing  common  carriers,  was  ready  to  be  de- 
veloped. This  was  about  the  year  1840.  The  chaotic 
condition  of  the  English  railroad  legislation  had  then 
begun  to  attract  public  notice,  and  this  led  to  a ref- 
erence of  the  whole  subject  to  the  first  of  those  many 
special  parliamentary  committees  which  have  taken  it 
into  consideration.  Sir  Robert  Peel  was  a member 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


35 


of  this  committee,  which  apparently  fell  back  on  the 
principles  of  free  trade  as  affording  all  the  regulation 
of  railroads  which  was  needed. 

It  was  argued  that  “an  enlightened  view  of  their 
own  interests  would  always  compel  managers  of  rail- 
roads to  have  due  regard  to  the  general  advantage  of 
the  public.”  At  the  same  time,  to  afford  railroad 
managers  a realizing  sense  of  what  the  principles  of 
free  trade  were,  numerous  charters  were  granted  and 
liberal  encouragement  given  to  the  construction  of 
competing  lines.  Then  came  on  the  great  railroad 
mania  of  1844,  and,  as  other  countries  have  since  done, 
England  awoke  one  day  from  dreams  of  boundless 
wealth  to  the  reality  of  general  ruin.  Free  trade  in 
railroads  was  then  pronounced  a failure,  and  in  due 
time  another  parliamentary  committee  was  appointed, 
and  the  whole  subject  was  again  taken  into  considera- 
tion. Of  this  committee  Mr.  Gladstone  was  the  guid- 
ing spirit.  Meanwhile  Sir  Robert  Peel,  who  was  then 
prime  minister,  had  changed  his  mind  as  respects  the 
efficacy  of  “ an  enlightened  self-interest  ” stimulated 
by  competition,  and  had  come  to  the  conclusion  that 
railroad  competition  was  an  expensive  luxury  for  the 
people  indulging  in  it,  and  that  there  might  be  some- 
thing in  state  management  of  railroads  ; a system 
which  his  friend,  King  Leopold  of  Belgium,  was  then 
developing  with  much  judgment  and  success.  Ac- 
cordingly Mr.  Gladstone’s  committee  made  a series 
of  reports  which  resulted  in  the  passage  of  a law  look- 
ing to  the  possible  acquisition  of  the  railroads  by  the 


86 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


state  at  the  expiration  of  twenty-one  years  from  that 
time.  With  this  measure  as  the  grand  result  of  their 
labors  the  committee  rested.  Not  so  the  railroad 
system.  The  twenty-one  years  elapsed  in  1865,  and 
during  that  time  Parliament  sat  and  pondered  the 
ever-increasing  complication  of  the  railroad  problem 
with  most  unsatisfactory  results.  Competition  be- 
tween railroads  through  all  those  years  was  working 
itself  out  into  combination  ; and,  as  the  companies 
one  after  another  asked  and  secured  acts  of  amalga- 
mation, obstinatelyrefusing  to  competent  was  clearly 
perceived  that  something  was  wrong.  The  parlia- 
mentary mind  was  sorely  troubled  ; but  no  way  of 
deliverance  revealed  itself.  In  1865  a new  commis- 
sion was  appointed,  which  went  again  over  the  famil- 
iar path,  this  time  in  the  direction  of  state  ownership. 
The  cry  now  was  that  the  process  of  amalgamation, 
or  consolidation  as  we  in  America  term  it,  had  gone 
so  far  that  the  time  was  close  at  hand  when  the  rail- 
roads would  manage  the  state,  if  the  state  did  not 
manage  the  railroads.  In  truth  there  was  something 
rather  alarming  in  the  speed  with  which  illustrations 
followed  one  upon  another  of  the  truth  of  Gebrge 
Stephenson’s  aphorism,  that — “ Where  combination 
is  possible,  competition  is  impossible.*’  The  thing, 
too,  was  now  done  upon  a scale  of  magnificence  which 
was  not  less  startling  than  novel.  The  world  had  seen 
nothing  of  the  kind  before,  and  naturally  paused  to 
ask  what  it  all  meant  and  whither  it  was  tending. 
For  instance,  one  committee  pointed  out,  as  an 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM, 


8 7 


example  of  what  the  process  might  lead  to,  that  a 
single  amalgamation  was  suggested  to  it  through 
which  a union  of  1200  miles  of  railroad  would  be  ef- 
fected, bringing  under  one  control  ^60,000,000  of 
capital  with  £4,000,000  of  annual  revenue,  and  ren- 
dering impossible  throughout  one  large  district  the 
existence  of  an  independent  line  of  railway.  A few 
years  later,  when  the  next  committee  sat,  all  this  had 
become  an  established  fact ; only  the  mileage  was 
1500  instead  of  1200,  the  capital  £63,000,000  instead 
of  £60,000,000,  and  the  annual  income  £7,000,000 
instead  of  ,£4,000,000.  Nevertheless  the  commission 
of  1865  followed  closely  in  the  steps  of  its  predeces- 
sors. It  dumped  upon  the  tables  of  Parliament  an 
enormous  “ blue-book,”  which  left  the  matter  exactly 
as  dark  as  it  was  before.  Still  the  amalgamations 
went  on.  All  England  was  rapidly  and  obviously 
being  partitioned  out  among  some  half-dozen  great 
corporations,  each  supreme  in  its  own  territory.  Then 
at  last,  in  1872,  a committee  on  railroad  amalgama- 
tions was  appointed,  the  Marquis  of  Salisbury  and 
the  Earl  of  Derby  being  two  of  its  members,  which 
really  gave  to  the  whole  subject  an  intelligent  consid- 
eration. Unlike  its  predecessors,  that  committee  did 
not  leave  the  railroad  problem  where  they  found  it. 
On  the  contrary,  they  advanced  it  by  one  entire  stage 
on  the  road  to  its  solution.  In  the  first  place,  after 
taking  a vast  amount  of  evidence,  they  proceeded  to 
review  the  forty  years  of  experience.  The  result  of 
that  review  may  be  stated  in  few  words. 


88 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


They  showed  with  grim  precision  how,  during  that 
period,  the  English  railroad  legislation  had  never  ac- 
complished anything  which  it  sought  to  bring  about, 
nor  prevented  anything  which  it  sought  to  hinder. 
The  cost  to  the  companies  of  this  useless  mass  of 
enactments  had  been  enormous,  amounting  to  some 
^80,000,000;  for  these  were  3,300  in  number  and 
filled  whole  volumes.  Then  the  committee  examined 
in  detail  the  various  parliamentary  theories  which 
had,  at  different  stages,  marked  the  development  of 
the  railroad  system.  The  highway  analogy  was  dis- 
missed in  silence  ; but  of  the  “ enlightened  view  of  self- 
interest  ” theory,  it  was  remarked  that  experience  had 
shown  that  as  a regulating  force  this  was  to  be  relied 
upon  “ only  to  a limited  extent. ” The  principle  of 
competition  was  next  discussed,  and  the  conclusion 
of  the  committee  was  “ that  competition  between 
railroads  exists  only  to  a limited  extent,  and  cannot 
be  maintained  by  legislation.5’  Of  the  great  Gladstone 
act  of  1845,  looking  to  the  ultimate  purchase  of  the 
railroads  by  the  government,  it  was  remarked  that 
“ the  terms  of  that  act  do  not  appear  to  be  suited  to 
the  present  condition  of  railway  property,  or  to  be 
likely  to  be  adopted  by  Parliament,  in  case  of  aiiy  in- 
tention of  Parliament  at  any  future  time  to  purchase 
the  railways.”  Having  disposed  of  this  measure,  the 
committee  addressed  itself  to  the  amalgamation  panic, 
which  through  so  many  years  had  rested  like  a night- 
mare on  the  slumberous  discussions  of  Parliament* 
They  cited  the  case  of  the  North-Eastern  railway, 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


89 


which  was  composed  of  thirty-seven  once  independent 
lines,  several  of  which  had  formerly  competed  with 
each  other.  Prior  to  their  consolidation  these  lines 
had,  generally  speaking,  charged  high  rates,  and  they 
had  been  able  to  pay  but  small  dividends.  Now,  the 
North-Eastern  was  the  most  complete  monopoly  in 
the  United  Kingdom.  From  the  Tyne  to  the  Humber 
it  held  the  whole  country  to  itself,  and  it  charged  the 
lowest  rates  and  paid  the  highest  dividends  of  all  the 
great  English  companies.  It  was  not  vexed  by  liti- 
gation, and  while  numerous  complaints  were  heard 
from  Lancashire  and  Yorkshire,  where  railway  com- 
petition existed,  no  one  had  appeared  before  the 
committee  to  prefer  any  complaint  against  the  North- 
Eastern.  In  view  of  such  facts  as  these  the  commit- 
tee reported  that  amalgamation  had  “ not  brought 
with  it  the  evils  that  were  anticipated,  but  that  in  any 
event  long  and  varied  experience  had  fully  demon- 
strated the  fact  that  while  Parliament  might  hinder 
and  thwart,  it  could  not  prevent  it,  and  it  was  equally 
powerless  to  lay  down  any  general  rules  determining 
its  limits  or  character/’  The  statute-book  was  full  of 
acts  regulating  the  rates  at  which  the  poorer  classes 
should  be  carried  by  rail,  and  these  acts  at  least  had 
always  been  pointed  to  as  indisputable  evidence  of 
the  virtue  and  efficacy  of  railroad  regulation  by  Par- 
liament. In  their  day  they  had  perhaps  done  good 
service  ; but  yet  even  of  these  as  a whole  it  was  re- 
ported that  “ the  ill  success  of  this  attempt  may  well 
justify  hesitation  in  entering  upon  further  general 


go 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


legislation  of  the  same  kind.”  Finally,  the  commit- 
tee examined  all  the  various  panaceas  for  railroad 
abuses  which  are  so  regularly  each  year  brought  for- 
ward as  novelties  in  the  legislatures  of  this  country. 
These  they  passed  in  merciless  review. 

Equal  mileage  rates  they  found  inexpedient  as 
well  as  impossible  ; the  favorite  idea  of  a revision  of 
rates  and  fares  with  a view  to  establishing  a legal 
tariff  sufficient  to  afford  a fair  return  and  no  more  on 
the  actual  cost  of  the  railroads,  they  pronounced 
utterly  impracticable ; tariffs  of  maxima  charges  in- 
corporated into  laws,  they  truly  said  had  been  re- 
peatedly enacted  and  as  often  had  failed  ; periodical 
revisions  of  all  rates  and  fares  by  government  agents 
they  found  to  be  practically  impossible,  unless  some 
standard  of  revision  which  had  not  yet  been  suggested 
could  be  devised.  There  is  in  the  French  law  a pro- 
vision that  whenever  the  profits  of  any  road  shall  ex- 
ceed a certain  percentage  on  its  cost,  such  excess 
shall  be  divided  between  the  corporation  owning  the 
railway  and  the  government.  This  plan,  also,  the 
committee  took  into  careful  consideration,  only  to 
conclude  that  in  Great  Britain  its  adoption  would  be 
attended  with  “ great  if  not  insuperable  difficulties.” 
Finally,  the  owning  of  the  railroads  by  the  govern- 
ment was  referred  to  as  “ a state  of  things  which  may 
possibly  arise,”  but  one  which  the  committee  was  not 
at  all  disposed  at  present  to  recommend. 

At  first  glance,  therefore,  it  seemed  as  if  this  com- 
mittee had  arrived  at  only  negative  results;  but  in 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


91 


truth  they  had  reached  positive  conclusions  of  the 
first  importance.  They  had,  indeed,  clearly  stated 
the  problem  ; a thing  never  before  done  in  Great 
Britain.  The  natural  development  of  the  railroad 
system  as  a system  was  recognized,  and  the  folly  of 
restrictive  legislation  demonstrated.  A new  policy 
was  thus  established,  at  the  base  of  which  was  the 
principle  of  private  ownership  and  management, 
which  was  to  be  left  to  work  out  its  own  destiny 
through  that  process  of  combination  in  which  com- 
peting monopolies  always  result.  The  members  of 
the  committee  saw  perfectly  clearly  where  their  pro- 
cess of  reasoning  would  bring  them  out.  It  could 
result  only  in  a tacit  assent  to  the  growth  of  private 
corporations  until  they  become  so  great  that  they 
must,  soon  or  late,  assume  relations  to  the  govern- 
ment corresponding  with  the  public  nature  of  their 
functions.  This  was  obvious  enough.  Meanwhile 
the  committee  also  saw  with  equal  clearness  that  this 
was  a question  of  the  future, — perhaps  of  the  remote 
future  ; a question  which  certainly  had  not  yet  pre- 
sented itself,  and  which  they  had  no  disposition  to 
precipitate.  They  accordingly  fixed  definitely  the 
policy  of  Great  Britain  as  an  expectant  one.  The 
railroad  system  was  to  be  left  to  develop  itself  in  its 
own  way,  as  a recognized  monopoly,  held  to  a strict 
public  accountability  as  such.  Whenever  it  should 
appear  that  it  abused  its  privileges  and  power,  then 
the  time  for  action  would  have  arrived.  As  yet  this 
was  not  the  case  in  any  such  degree  as  called  for  a 


92 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM 


decisive  and  far  reaching  measure  of  reform.  To  bet- 
ter watch  over  it  meanwhile,  and  to  cause  its  mem- 
bers to  work  with  less  friction  among  themselves  and 
with  a more  careful  regard  to  the  equal  rights  of  pri- 
vate persons,  an  exceptional  piece  of  governmental 
machinery  was  provided  in  the  form  of  a board  of 
commissioners.  The  powers  of  this  tribunal  were 
both  judicial  and  executive  in  character  and  very 
broad.  It  was  its  duty  not  only  to  hear  all  complaints 
of  private  parties,  but  to  intervene  in  cases  of  difficulty 
which  might  arise  between  the  companies  themselves. 
The  board  was  in  fact  designed  to  insure  to  the  com- 
munity an  easy  and  equitable  interchange  of  traffic 
over  its  railroad  lines,  as  well  as  to  put  a stop  in  so  far 
as  might  be  practicable  to  that  unjust  and  vexatious 
system  of  discrimination  which  seems  to  be  insepa- 
rable from  all  active  railroad  competition.  Through 
this  board  the  exceptional  character  of  the  rail- 
road system  was  at  last  recognized.  An  attempt  was 
made  to  deal  with  the  anomaly  as  an  anomaly. 
Meanwhile  the  most  noticeable  feature  in  the  career 
of  the  board,  which  has  now  been  in  existence  five 
years,  is  the  very  trifling  call  which  seems  to  have 
been  made  upon  it.  So  far  as  can  be  judged  from  its 
annual  reports,  the  cases  which  come  before  it  are 
neither  numerous  nor  of  great  importance.  It  would, 
however,  be  wholly  unsafe  to  conclude  from  this  fact 
that  such  a tribunal  is  unnecessary.  On  the  con- 
trary, it  may  confidently  be  asserted  that  no  compe- 
tent board  of  railroad  commissioners,  clothed  with 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


93 


the  peculiar  powers  of  the  English  board,  will  ever, 
either  there  or  anywhere  else,  have  many  cases  to 
dispose  of.  The  mere  fact  that  the  tribunal  is  there, 
• — that  a machinery  does  exist  for  the  prompt  and 
final  decision  of  that  class  of  questions,  puts  an  end 
to  them.  They  no  longer  arise.  They  cease  to  arise 
for  the  simple  reason  that  the  railroad  corporations  in 
these  matters  are  not  like  the  members  of  a numerous 
and  complicated  business  community.  The  controver- 
sies among  them,  which  do  not  involve  legal  points, 
are  comparatively  simple  and  confined  to  few  persons. 
These  they  will  in  the  vast  majority  of  cases  settle 
themselves,  if  they  only  know  that  if  they  do  not  so 
settle  them,  a public  official  will.  The  English 
board  has  always  been  composed  of  very  competent 
men.  Accordingly  the  officials  of  the  corporations, 
knowing  quite  well  in  advance  what  their  decisions  will 
be,  do  not  probably  care  to  encounter  them.  A single 
test  case  disposes  of  innumerable  subsequent  cases. 

In  Great  Britain,  therefore,  the  discussion  of  the 
railroad  problem  may  be  considered  as  over  for  the 
time  being.  It  is  quiescent,  not  dead.  The  period 
of  meddlesome  .and  restrictive  legislation  is  passed, 
and  the  corporations  are  now  left  to  work  out  their 
own  destinies  in  their  own  way,  just  so  long  as  they 
show  a reasonable  regard  for  the  requirements  and 
rights  of  the  community.  The  time  may  not  be 
remote,  when,  for  instance,  all  England  will  be  served 
by  three  or  four  gigantic  railroad  companies,  or  per- 
haps by  only  one  ; just  as  many  cities  are  now  fur- 


94 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


nished  with  gas.  Nor  is  this  ultimate  result  any 
longer  viewed  with  apprehension.  The  clearer  politi- 
cal observers  have  come  to  realize  at  last  that  con- 
centration brings  with  it  an  increased  sense  of 
responsibility.  The  larger  the  railroad  corporation, 
the  more  cautious  is  its  policy.  As  a result,  there- 
fore, of  forty  years  of  experiment  and  agitation, 
Great  Britain  has  on  this  head  come  back  very  nearly 
to  its  point  of  commencement.  It  has  settled  down 
on  the  doctrine  of  laissez  faire . The  river  is  not  to 
be  crossed  until  it  is  reached  ; and,  perhaps,  by  the 
time  it  is  reached  a practicable  method  of  crossing 
will  have  become  quite  apparent. 

Turning  now  from  Great  Britain  to  Belgium,  an 
opportunity  is  offered  to  observe  the  practical  work- 
ing of  a wholly  different  policy.  The  famous  Belgian 
railroad  system  originated  with  King  Leopold,  and 
bears  to  this  day  marks  of  the  creating  mind.  When 
the  Manchester  & Liverpool  railway  was  completed 
the  Belgian  revolution  had  not  yet  taken  place, 
and  Leopold  was  still  a resident  of  England.  His 
attention  was  naturally  drawn  to  the  possible  conse- 
quences of  this  new  application  of  steam,  and  when, 
a few  years  later,  he  was  called  to  the  throne  of  Bel- 
gium, one  of  his  earliest  projects  related  to  the  con- 
struction of  railroads  in  his  new  dominions.  He  was 
strongly  persuaded,  however,  that  the  English  system 
of  private  construction  was  not  the  correct  one.  He, 
as  well  as  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  strongly  adhered 
to  the  analogy  of  the  highway  ; but,  more  logical 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


95 


than  the  duke,  his  was  the  king’s  highway  and  not  a 
turnpike.  Accordingly  he  planned  a system  of  rail- 
way communication  in  which  the  roads — the  steam- 
highways — were  to  be  constructed,  owned,  and 
operated  by  the  state.  With  some  difficulty  legisla- 
tive assent  to  his  scheme  was  obtained,  and  the 
earliest  lines  were  undertaken  in  1833.  The  govern- 
ment then  went  on  year  by  year  developing  the 
system,  but  failed  to  keep  pace  with  the  public 
demand.  Accordingly,  in  a few  years,  though  not 
until  after  the  principal  and  more  remunerative  routes 
were  occupied,  concessions,  as  they  were  called,  being 
the  equivalent  of  English  charters,  were  made  to 
private  companies,  which  carried  on  the  work  of 
extension. 

One  peculiar  feature  in  all  these  concessions  had, 
however,  a direct  and  sagacious  though  somewhat 
distant  bearing  on  the  fundamental  idea  of  the  Bel- 
gian railroad  system, — that  of  ultimate  government 
ownership.  They  were  all  made  for  a term  of  ninety 
years,  at  the  expiration  of  which  the  railways  were 
to  become  the  property  of  the  state,  which  was  to 
pay  only  for  their  rolling-stock.  The  right  was  also 
reserved  to  the  government  of  buying  back  the  con- 
cession at  any  time,  upon  assuming  payment  to  the 
owners  for  any  unexpired  balance  of  the  ninety  years 
of  a yearly  sum  equal  to  the  average  net  receipts 
during  the  seven  years  next  preceding  the  taking. 

Until  their  concessions  should  be  thus  termi- 
nated, however,  the  private  companies  owned  and 


96 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


operated  their  several  roads  in  much  the  same  way 
as  English  or  American  corporations ; although  the 
greatest  benefit  from  their  construction  resulted 
to  the  state  lines,  which,  holding  the  centre  of  the 
country  and  the  main  routes  of  communication, 
kept  the  private  lines  necessarily  tributary.  In 
1850,  the  government  owned  about  two-thirds  of 
all  the  railroad  mileage  then  in  operation,  and  pri- 
vate companies  the  other  one-third.  Ten  years 
later  the  proportion  had  changed,  two-thirds  of 
the  system  being  in  the  hands  of  private  compa- 
nies. It  so  happened,  also,  that,  as  the  government 
in  making  the  concessions  had  followed  no  plan  of 
districting  the  country,  but  had  rather  adopted  a 
policy  of  competing  lines,  these  lines  competed  not 
only  with  each  other  but  also  with  the  state  lines. 
From  this  fact  there  resulted  a condition  of  affairs 
which  was  wholly  unanticipated,  but  which  has  since 
constituted  the  very  essence  of  the  Belgian  railroad 
system.  For  the  first  and  only  time  in  railroad  his- 
tory, a case  was  presented  in  which  competition  did 
not  result  in  combination.  The  one  system  of  lines 
being  owned  by  the  state  and  the  other  by  private 
companies,  no  consolidation  of  the  two  was  practica- 
ble as  against  the  public  ; and  accordingly  the  gov- 
ernment found  itself  in  a position  to  regulate  the 
whole  system  through  the  ownership  of  a part  of  it, 
and  in  consequence  was  able  to  establish  a policy  of 
cheap  railroad  transportation,  under  the  influence  of 
which  the  country  developed  with  amazing  rapidity. 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


97 


The  action  of  the  government,  however,  practi- 
cally forced  the  various  independent  companies  to 
unite  among  themselves  ; until,  about  the  year  i860, 
they  had  become  consolidated  into  trunk  lines  suffi- 
ciently powerful  to  compete  with  the  state  on  equal 
terms.  Under  these  circumstances,  in  order  to  main- 
tain the  principle  of  its  railroad  system,  the  govern- 
ment was  forced  into  a policy  of  further  development 
which  in  1870  resulted  in  the  acquisition  by  lease 
of  a whole  system  of  competing  lines.  Again,  in  the 
year  1872,  as  one  of  the  indirect  outcomes  of  the 
Franco-German  war,  the  government  felt  constrained 
to  purchase,  from  the  English  company  which  owned 
it,  the  Luxembourg  road  in  order  to  keep  it  from 
falling  into  German  hands.  Finally,  at  the  close  of 
the  year  1876,  the  state  owned  or  controlled  sixty  per 
cent,  of  the  entire  railroad  mileage  of  the  country, 
while  the  remaining  forty  per  cent,  belonged  to  pri- 
vate companies.  These  private  companies  practically 
operate  their  roads  with  the  utmost  freedom  from 
governmental  interference.  They  raise  and  lower 
their  rates  at  discretion,  and  no  limitation  is  put  on 
the  amount  of  dividends  they  may  declare.  In  respect 
to  questions  of  police  and  safety  only  does  the  gov- 
ernment formally  interfere  with  them  ; and,  with  the 
exception  of  certain  guaranteed  lines,  it  has  no  power 
even  of  supervising  their  accounts,  or,  indeed,  of 
compelling  them  to  render  any. 

Of  late  years,  therefore,  Belgium  has  simply  pre- 
sented the  spectacle  of  the  state,  in  the  character  of 
5 


98 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


the  richest  and  most  powerful  railroad  company  of 
its  system,  holding  in  check  and  regulating  other 
companies,  not  greatly  inferior  to  it  in  power,  which 
compete  with  it  for  business  and  with  which  it  deals 
on  terms  of  equality.  The  effect  of  this  on  each 
system  of  roads  has  been  excellent.  At  times, 
when  the  government  has  attempted  certain  great 
measures  of  reform  or  bold  experiments  in  transpor- 
tation, its  course  has  been  vehemently  criticised  by 
the  private  companies,  who  have  complained  that 
their  property  was  being  unjustly  depreciated  by 
tariff  reductions  made  upon  unsound  principles,  but 
which,  from  their  position,  they  were  compelled  to 
adopt.  This  was  perfectly  true  ; but,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  government  was  so  largely  interested  in 
railroad  property  that  it  felt  no  disposition  to  persist 
in  any  line  of  experiment  which  seemed  likely  to 
reduce  its  value  permanently  ; and  in  the  long  run  the 
private  companies  have  found  that  the  experiments 
of  government  were  far  less  to  be  feared  than  the  wild 
and  ruinous  fluctuations  of  railroad  competition,  as  it 
was  carried  on  in  Great  Britain.  These  they  were 
exempt  from.  The  competition  they  had  to  meet 
was  decided,  but  of  a wholly  different  character.  It 
was  certain,  firm,  and  equably  distributed.  Those 
managing  the  state  roads  acted  at  all  times  under  a 
heavy  sense  of  responsibility  ; they  did  not  dare  to 
show  preference  to  persons  or  localities;  they  could 
not  do  business  for  anything  or  nothing  one  day,  and 
the  next  combine  against  the  public  to  make  good 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


99 


their  losses  through  extortionate  charges.  In  a word, 
it  was  found  that  while  the  competition  between 
private  roads  in  Great  Britain  and  America  disturbed 
and  disorganized  railroad  traffic,  that  between  public 
and  private  roads  in  Belgium  regulated  it. 

The  government,  meanwhile,  in  its  turn  pressed 
by  the  competition  of  the  private  lines,  found  itself 
compelled  to  work  its  roads  on  regular  “ commercial 
principles.”  In  order  to  get  business  it  made  special 
rates,  and,  if  necessary,  entered  into  joint-purse 
arrangements  with  its  adversaries.  It  made  bold 
experiments,  and  through  those  experiments  es- 
tablished certain  principles  of  transportation  now 
universally  recognized.  At  other  times  its  ex- 
periments resulted  in  failure  and  were  abandoned. 
Yet  little  doubt  can  be  entertained  that  it  was  the 
constant  pressure  of  competition  which  kept  the 
state  lines  up  to  their  work  and  in  the  advance  of 
railroad  development.  The  tendency  in  Belgium 
now  is  for  the  government  to  absorb  all  the  remain- 
ing  lines.  Should  this  be  done,  it  will  then  remain 
to  be  seen  whether  by  so  doing  that  equilibrium  to 
which  the  success  of  the  whole  system  has  appar- 
ently been  due  will  not  have  been  destroyed.  Com- 
petition, certainly,  will  then  no  longer  exist,  and  with 
its  disappearance  a strong  incentive  to  activity  may 
also  disappear. 

It  would  of  course  be  most  unnatural  to  suppose 
that  the  state  roads  of  Belgium  have  always  given 
perfect  satisfaction  to  the  community.  There  have, 


IOO 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


on  the  contrary,  been  very  grave  and  distinct  com- 
plaints in  regard  to  their  management,  but  nothing 
which  will  compare  with  those  constantly  made  both 
in  Great  Britain  and  in  America.  To  satisfy  every 
one  always  is  a result  not  likely  to  be  attained  under 
any  system  or  in  any  country;  meanwhile,  it  may 
with  tolerable  safety  be  asserted  that  the  Belgian 
system  is  as  satisfactory  to  the  people  of  Belgium  as 
the  nature  of  things  human  permits  that  it  should 
be  ; certainly  the  public  feeling  points  very  distinctly 
towards  the  acquisition  of  the  remaining  lines  of  the 
system  by  the  government,  while  the  sale  of  the 
government  lines  to  private  corporations  has  never 
been  urged  by  any  considerable  party.  Financially 
the  undertaking  has  proved  a decided  success,  the 
government  roads  netting  an  annual  profit  of  late 
years  of  about  six  per  cent,  which  is  equivalent  to 
at  least  ten  per  cent  in  this  country. 

While  in  Great  Britain,  therefore,  the  railroad 
problem  seems  entering  upon  a period  of  comparative 
quiescence, — a phase  of  expectancy,  as  it  were, — in 
Belgium  the  contrary  would  seem  to  be  the  case. 
Should  the  Belgian  government  now  adopt  a policy 
of  expansion,  and  proceed  to  acquire  the  remaining 
lines  of  the  system,  it  will  enter  upon  the  very 
doubtful  experiment  of  exclusive  state  manage- 
ment. The  problem  will  then  assume  wholly  new 
phases,  the  development  of  which  will  everywhere  be 
watched  with  deep  interest. 

The  railroad  system  of  France  was  developed  on 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


IOI 


principles  wholly  different  from  those  adopted  in 
England  and  Belgium.  In  that  country  there  was 
none  of  the  bold  English  initiative  ready  to  force 
the  experiment  along  through  private  enterprise  ; nor 
was  there  any  King  Leopold  on  the  throne.  There 
was  already  an  admirable  system  of  highways,  and, 
comparatively  speaking  no  great  need  was  felt  of  rail- 
roads. Moreover,  in  spite  of  the  political  changes  and 
the  turbulence  which  have  characterized  the  history  of 
the  country,  the  French  mind  is  essentially  conserva- 
tive ; it  looks  naturally  to  the  government  for  an  in- 
itiative, and  not  only  submits  to,  but  craves  minute 
regulation  from  a central  authority.  Accordingly, 
when  forty  years  ago  England  and  America  caught 
eagerly  at  the  idea  of  railroad  development,  and 
rushed  into  it  with  all  the  feverish  ardor  which  ever 
marks  private  speculation,  France  hung  back.  It 
was  not  until  1837,  when  already  what  are  now  the 
great  trunk  routes  of  Great  Britain  and  of  America 
had  assumed  a definite  shape,  that  the  French  system 
began  slowly  to  struggle  into  life.  Even  then  the 
first  attempts  resulted  only  in  failure.  The  govern- 
ment, after  hesitating  long,  recoiled  from  the  idea 
of  following  the  bold  example  set  by  Belgium,  and 
decided  in  favor  of  a system  of  concessions  to  pri- 
vate companies,  instead  of  construction  by  the  state. 
These  companies  were  organized  at  last,  and  an  ap- 
peal was  made  to  the  public.  The  public,  still  timid 
and  lacking  confidence  in  itself,  failed  to  respond, 
and  the  companies,  frightened  at  the  liabilities  they 


102 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


had  incurred,  renounced  their  concessions.  Then  at 
last,  but  not  until  1842,  the  government  definitely 
took  the  lead.  A division  of  risk  was  effected.  Nine 
great  lines  were  mapped  out,  seven  of  which  were  in- 
tended to  connect  Paris  with  the  departments  of  the 
frontier  or  the  sea-board,  while  two  were  provincial. 
As  respected  some  of  these  the  state  assumed  the 
expense  of  acquiring  the  necessary  lands  and  building 
the  stations,  while  the  companies  undertook  to  furnish 
the  superstructure  and  material,  and  to  operate  the 
roads ; as  respected  others  the  companies  took  upon 
themselves  the  whole  burden.  The  political  disturb- 
ances of  1848  and  the  years  immediately  ensuing 
greatly  retarded  French  development  in  railroads,  as 
it  did  in  everything  else.  It  was  not  until  1859  that 
the  system  assumed  a definite  shape.  Then  at  last, 
under  the  inspiration  of  the  imperial  government, 
a new  and  final  arrangement  was  effected.  The  exist- 
ing lines  were  consolidated,  and  France  was  prac- 
tically partitioned  out  among  six  great  companies, 
to  each  of  which  a separate  territory  was  allotted. 
The  fundamental  distinction  between  the  French  and 
the  English  and  American  railroad  systems  was  now 
brought  into  sharp  prominence.  Not  only  was  no 
provision  made  for  competition,  but  every  precau- 
tion was  taken  to  prevent  it.  No  company  was  to 
trench  upon  the  territory  allotted  another,  and, 
in  consideration  of  this  immunity,  each  line  under- 
took within  its  own  district  a railroad  development 
proportionate  to  all  reasonable  demands.  Again, 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . I03 

however,  the  companies  found  the  burden  they  had 
assumed  out  of  proportion  to  their  resources.  Once 
more  recourse  was  had  to  the  state.  The  neces- 
sary assistance  was  forthcoming,  but  on  condition. 
The  lines  to  be  constructed  and  operated  by  each 
company  were  laid  down,  and  arbitrarily  divided  into 
classes,  designated  as  the  ancien  reseau  and  the  nou- 
veau reseau , the  first  of  which  included  the  older  and 
more  profitable,  and  the  latter  the  additional  routes 
the  construction  of  which  was  deemed  essential. 
Upon  the  securities  issued  to  build  these  last  the 
government  guaranteed  a minimum  rate  of  interest, 
which  the  companies  undertook  ultimately  to  reim- 
burse. The  material  of  both  the  ancien  and  the  nou- 
veau reseaux  was  also  pledged  as  security  for  any 
advances  which  the  state  might  be  called  upon  to 
make.  The  amount  of  advances  thus  made  up  to 
the  present  time  somewhat  exceeds  $60,000,000. 
The  concessions  are  for  ninety-nine  years,  at  the  ex- 
piration of  which  the  roads  will  revert  to  the  state, 
which  is  bound,  however,  to  purchase  the  rolling- 
stock  at  a valuation,  after  deducting  advances  made. 
The  right  is  also  reserved  to  the  government  of  pur- 
chasing the  lines  on  payment  of  an  annuity  for  the  un- 
expired portion  of  the  ninety-nine  years’  concession, 
calculated  on  the  average  profits  of  the  lines  during 
the  seven  years  previous  to  the  act  of  taking. 

The  French  method  of  operating  the  railroads  is 
as  far  removed  from  the  English  or  American  as  is 
the  system  under  which  they  were  constructed.  The 


104 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


supervision  of  the  government  is  ubiquitous.  Every 
tariff,  every  time-table,  has  to  be  submitted  for  ap- 
proval, and  there  are  public  agents  at  every  principal 
station.  The  accounts  of  the  companies  are  subjected 
to  an  annual  examination,  and  the  most  rigid  police 
regulations  are  enforced.  If  questions  arise  between 
companies,  they  are  settled  not  by  might  asserting 
itself  through  competition,  but  by  a board  of  ar- 
bitration, with  an  ultimate  appeal  in  matters  of 
graver  importance  to  the  Central  Railroad  Com- 
mission. 

Thus  it  is  that,  in  theory,  the  railroad  system  of 
France  is  purely  and  essentially  French.  The  gov- 
ernment initiated  it,  supervises  it,  has  a large  ulti- 
mate pecuniary  interest  in  it.  At  the  expiration  of 
sixty  years  more  it  may  yet  be  made  to  pay  off 
the  national  debt.  At  present,  however,  it  is  accu- 
mulating it.  The  guaranteed  interest  is  a constant 
burden  on  the  revenue.  And  it  is  in  this  connection 
that  the  French  railroad  problem  asserts  itself.  The 
essence  of  the  system  lies  in  regulation,  as  a substi- 
tute for  competition.  One  railroad  war,  such  as  an- 
nually vexes  America,  would  make  the  guaranty  of 
the  government  assume  proportions  calculated  to 
appal  the  most  daring  minister  of  finance.  One  can 
imagine  the  fury  of  American  railroad  struggles  if 
the  payment  of  interest  was  guaranteed  from  the 
public  treasury  ! Competition,  therefore,  cannot  be 
tolerated  among  the  railroads  of  France.  The 
French  public,  nevertheless,  like  the  English  and  the 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


105 


American,  is  constantly  demanding  more  railroads. 
It  asks  for  them,  too,  not  because  they  are  profitable 
in  themselves,  but  because  of  the  incidental  advan- 
tages to  be  derived  from  them.  The  great  estab- 
lished companies  naturally  say  that  there  must  be 
some  limit  to  construction.  They  can  ruin  neither 
themselves  nor  the  government  by  building  railroads 
intended  merely  to  improve  the  value  of  adjacent 
property.  To  this  those  demanding  the  additional 
roads  simply  reply  that  if  the  great  companies  will 
not  supply  them,  they  desire  the  privilege  of  supply- 
ing themselves. 

Yielding  to  this  plausible  argument,  and  to  a feel- 
ing of  political  necessity,  a law  of  the  empire,  known 
as  the  railroad  law  of  the  12th  of  July,  1865,  under- 
took to  create  a third  re'seau  called  the  reseau  vicinal. 
It  was  a French  approach  to  the  American  idea  of  a 
general  railroad  law.  The  departments  and  com- 
munes were  empowered  either  to  construct  certain 
local  railroads  themselves,  or  to  grant  charters  for 
their  construction  by  others.  It  was  erroneously 
supposed  that  these  roads  would  be  insignificant 
affairs,  and  act  as  mere  feeders  to  the  great  compa- 
nies. The  French  do  not  move  rapidly  in  enterprises 
of  this  description,  but  still  they  move.  The  door 
was  now  open  ; competition  soon  entered  through  it. 
At  first  few  local  concessions  were  made,  and  those 
in  good  faith.  Then  the  projects  began  to  flow  in, 
and  they  rapidly  assumed  a new  phase.  The  con- 
tractor, the  speculator,  and  the  black-mailer  made 


io  6 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


their  appearance  in  rapid  succession.  Railroads 
were  built  to  be  sold. 

A new  character  now  suddenly  appeared  upon 
the  stage  in  the  person  of  a daring  Belgian  operator, 
or  railroad  king,  one  Phillipart  by  name.  This  man 
had  seen  his  opportunity  some  years  before  in  Bel- 
gium, and  by  constructing  and  connecting  a number 
of  cheap  railroads  in  that  country  parallel  with  the 
state  roads  he  had  succeeded  in  so  embarrassing  the 
operations  of  the  latter,  that  the  government  had  in 
1870  leased  his  properties  on  terms  very  advantageous 
to  him.  It  in  fact  bought  him  out.  Transferring 
himself  to  Paris  he  there  attempted  a similar  opera- 
tion on  the  French  reads  under  cover  of  the  re'seau 
vicinal , — connecting  the  disconnected  lines  into  com- 
peting systems.  He  wielded  an  enormous  capital 
and  operated  on  a large  scale.  For  a time  he  occa- 
sioned the  government  and  the  old  established  lines 
much  perplexity.  Obtaining  control  of  several  banks 
and  taking  advantage  of  the  mania  for  railroad  con- 
struction, he  developed  his  plans  with  great  rapidity. 
In  1870,  the  local  lines  constructed  under  the  law  of 
1865  aggregated  but  180  miles.  During  the  war 
with  Germany  the  amount  did  not,  of  course, 
increase.  Under  the  stimulus  of  the  Phillipart 
mania,  however,  it  rapidly  assumed  new  proportions, 
and  in  1875  there  were  930  miles  of  completed  local 
roads,  while  1730  more  miles  were  in  process  of 
actual  construction,  and  756  miles  authorized. 
These  roads  involved  an  estimated  outlay  of  $130,- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


107 


000,000.  The  posture  of  affairs  was  highly  alarming, 
and  the  government  was  being  rapidly  forced  into  a 
very  difficult  position.  The  French  nation  had  a 
large  pecuniary  interest  in  the  existing  railroad  sys- 
tem. It  was  in  fact  under  the  terms  of  the  concessions 
a vast  sinking  fund  for  the  future  extinction  of  the 
national  debt.  Its  value  was  now  seriously  menaced 
by  that  uncontrolled  competition  which  it  had  been 
the  whole  effort  of  the  French  railroad  policy  to  pro- 
vide against.  Yet  the  hands  of  the  government  were 
tied.  It  did  not  dare  to  run  counter  to  the  mania 
and  repeal  the  law  of  1865,  for  that  would  have  been 
tantamount  to  forbidding  all  future  railroad  construc- 
tion. It  seemed,  indeed,  as  if  the  Phillipart  scheme 
must  again  prove  a success,  and  that  the  established 
lines  would  have  to  submit  to  being  victimized.  The 
mania,  however,  did  not  suffice  to  overcome  the  ob- 
stacles in  the  great  operator’s  way.  The  odds  against 
Phillipart  were  too  heavy.  He  was  broken  down  in 
his  stock  speculations  by  a general  combination 
against  him,  and  failed  for  an  enormous  amount  early 
in  1876.  With  his  failure  the  mania  collapsed.  The 
question,  however,  only  assumed  a new  shape.  The 
local  lines  were  worthless  in  themselves,  but  those 
holding  stock  in  them  were  not  without  influence, 
and  they  now  turned  to  the  government.  The  ques- 
tion of  the  purchase  of  all  the  railroads  by  the  state 
was  agitated  ; and  it  was  claimed  the  government 
should  at  least  complete  the  unfinished  local  roads 
and  do  something  to  relieve  their  owners.  The  plan 


108  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . * 

of  purchase  by  the  state  encountered,  however,  much 
resistance  from  the  existing  companies,  and  the  dis- 
cussion would  probably  soon  have  died  away,  had  it 
not  recently  been  revived  through  the  publication  of 
two  reports  prepared  by  the  present  Minister  of 
Public  Works.  Here  the  matter  now  rests  and  the 
course  which  events  will  take  is  not  apparent.  Mean- 
while, the  whole  drift  of  discussion  tends,  away  from 
the  private  ownership  of  French  railroads  and  reliance 
on  competition  among  them,  towards  a closer  connec- 
tion between  the  railroads  and  the  government.  So 
far  as  uncontrolled  competition  is  concerned,  the 
result  of  the  Phillipart  struggle  has,  indeed,  been 
decisive.  It  will  hardly  again  be  seriously  attempted. 
On  the  other  hand  the  vested  interests  in  the  estab- 
lished companies  are  so  powerful  that  it  seems 
improbable  they  will  be  disturbed.  The  relations 
between  the  community  in  France  and  its  railroad 
system  are  moreover  reasonably  satisfactory,  and  no 
strong  disposition  to  force  a change  is  apparent. 
Though  not  especially  enterprising,  the  companies 
are  as  a rule  solvent,  impartial  and  reliable.  Indeed 
those  managing  them  look  with  simple  astonishment 
on  the  wild  fluctuations  in  the  railroad  tariffs  in- 
cident to  the  American  method  of  operation,  and 
they  do  not  hesitate  to  say  that  if  any  similar  out- 
rages were  perpetrated  on  the  French  people  and 
business  public  by  them,  the  question  of  the  state 
ownership  of  railroads  would  immediately  assume  a 
new  shape.  Such  proceedings  would  not  be  tolerated. 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


IO9 


If  there  is,  indeed,  an  inherent  and  irresistible 
tendency  in  the  railroad  systems  of  all  countries  to 
assume  closer  relations  with  governmental  systems  ; 
if,  as  so  many  are  inclined  to  believe,  transportation 
is  such  an  important  and  complex  element  in  modern 
life  that  it  must  ultimately  find  its  place  among  the 
functions  of  the  state,  then  it  is  safe  to  say  that 
in  no  other  country  does  the  railroad  problem  pre- 
sent so  interesting  a phase  of  present  development 
as  in  Germany.  The  inclination  of  the  German 
mind,  especially  the  North  German  mind,  is  bu- 
reaucratic. It  takes  naturally  and  kindly  to  this 
method  of  development.  It  seems  the  natural 
mode  in  which  the  political  genius  of  the  people 
works.  With  us,  in  America,  it  is  just  the  oppo- 
site. The  commission  is  our  bureau.  We  are  con- 
tinually driven  to  a recourse  to  it,  but  we  always  ac- 
cept the  necessity  with  reluctance,  and  the  machine 
withal  does  not  work  well.  Where  it  is  not  corrupt, 
it  is  apt  to  be  clumsy.  We  get  from  it  no  such  re- 
sults as  are  obtained  by  the  Germans.  The  reason, 
if  we  choose  to  seek  it,  is  obvious  enough.  The 
bureau  is  a natural  outgrowth  of  the  German  polity; 
it  is  the  regular  and  appropriate  form  in  which  that 
polity  effects  its  work.  With  us  it  is  a necessity,  but 
none  the  less  an  excrescence.  Our  political  system 
has  come  in  contact,  through  the  complex  develop- 
ment of  civilization,  with  a class  of  problems  in  pres- 
ence of  which  it  has  broken  down  ; such  questions  as 
those  of  police,  sanitary  regulations,  education,  in- 


I IO 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


ternal  improvements,  transportation.  At  first  we 
always  try  to  deal  with  these  through  the  machinery 
of  parliamentary  government,  a sort  of  sublimated 
town  meeting.  The  legislative  committee  is  the 
embryotic  American  bureau  ; as  such  it  serves  its 
purpose  for  a time,  doing  its  work  in  an  uncouth, 
lumbering  sort  of  way,  and  then,  its  insufficiency  be- 
coming manifest,  it  makes  way  for  the  commission. 
The  American  commission  is,  however,  by  no  means 
the  Prussian  bureau.  It  is  at  best  a very  poor  sub- 
stitute for  it ; a thing  suddenly  improvised  in  place 
of  one  gradually  developed. 

When  a community  is  brought  face  to  face  with 
such  a problem  as  the  gradual  political  development, 
it  might  almost  be  said  the  political  evolution,  of  its 
railroad  system,  this  distinction  becomes  important. 
In  the  one  case  the  question  is  approached  by  a pa- 
tient, trained  professional ; in  the  other  by  an  eager, 
ever-confident  amateur.  If,  therefore,  the  problem 
of  reestablishing  the  state  in  new  and  more  effective 
relations  with  the  agencies  of  transportation  is  to  be 
solved  in  our  time,  it  is  pretty  safe  to  predict  that  the 
solution  will  be  reached  in  Germany  long  before  it  is 
in  America.  Not  only  do  they  approach  it  there 
in  a more  practical  and  scientific  spirit,  but  the  ground 
is  better  prepared.  The  material  is  more  ready  to  the 
hand.  For,  almost  necessarily,  the  German  railroad 
system  reflects  the  condition  of  the  German  political 
system.  It  is  a curious  complication,  very  difficult  to 
understand  : — a mass  of  raw  material,  out  of  which 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . Ill 

order  is  to  be  deduced.  Particularism  rules  supreme  ; 
each  petty  sovereignty  has  a policy  of  its  own.  Yet  cer 
tain  fundamental  principles  have  asserted  themselves 
everywhere.  The  system,  for  instance,  was  originally 
established  on  the  principle  of  concessions  to  private 
companies,  usually  for  from  thirty  to  fifty  years,  and 
the  idea  of  competition  found  no  place  in  it.  On  the 
contrary,  the  building  of  competing  lines  was  ex- 
pressly forbidden.  As  the  several  lines  extended 
themselves,  this  restriction  so  impeded  their  develop- 
ment that  in  Prussia  a few  years  ago  it  was  repealed. 
The  results  which  have  just  been  described  in  France 
then  ensued.  A mania  for  railroad  construction  and 
expansion  developed  itself.  Dr.  Strausburg  burst 
upon  an  astonished  world.  The  usual  result  followed. 
A panic  and  collapse  took  place,  and  railroad  prop- 
erty depreciated  in  value  as  much  in  Prussia  as  re- 
cently it  has  in  America. 

But  throughout  Germany  the  relations  between 
the  state  and  the  railroads  have  always  been  very 
close.  Those  building  the  roads  under  concessions 
have  received  liberal  aid  from  government,  sometimes 
in  the  form  of  a subsidy,  at  other  times  through  a 
guaranty  of  interest  or  dividends  ; while  in  yet  other 
cases  the  state  itself  has  been  a large  stockholder. 
The  tendency  towards  a closer  connection  between  the 
government  and  the  railroads  has  constantly  been  ap- 
parent, and  is  more  pronounced  now  than  ever  before. 
Prussia,  always  a large,  if  not  the  largest,  owner  and 
manager  of  railroads  in  North  Germany,  has  lately 


I 12 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


purchased  new  lines;  while  the  government  of  Bava- 
ria has  at  last  acquired  all  the  railroads  within  the 
limits  of  that  country,  and  is  indeed  thus  the  first 
considerable  government  in  the  world  to  both  own 
and  work  its  entire  system.  Whether  actually  own- 
ing and  operating  the  railroads  or  not,  however,  the 
hand  of  the  German  governments  has  ever  been  pres- 
ent in  their  affairs,  regulating  everything,  from  the 
rates  on  merchandise  to  the  safeguards  against  acci- 
dent. Starting  from  the  fundamental  German  princi- 
ple that  it  is  not  only  the  right  but  the  duty  of  the 
state  to  interfere  in  every  matter  of  public  interest,  it 
assumed  the  power  as  a matter  of  course,  until  in 
practice  the  will  of  the  minister  was  able  to  make  it- 
self felt  in  every  direction. 

Owing  to  the  lack  of  cohesion  among  the  politi- 
cal organizations  of  the  German-speaking  race,  the 
necessities  of  their  position  long  ago  caused  the  rail- 
roads of  central  Europe  to  form  a union  among  them- 
selves. In  this  there  were  included,  in  1873,  nearly 
one  hundred  managements,  operating  26,000  miles 
of  track,  the  governments  being  represented  in  the 
same  way  as  private  managements.  This  union  set- 
tled questions  of  fares  and  freights,  and  made  all 
necessary  traffic  arrangements.  Through  it  combi- 
nation was  made  to  take  the  place  of  competition, 
and  in  case  of  controversy  the  roads  had  recourse  to 
arbitration,  directly  under  the  eye  of  the  government 
and  of  the  public,  instead  of  to  wars  of  rates.  Before 
the  battle  of  Sadowa  brought  the  North  German 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  1 1 3 

empire  into  existence,  this  union  was,  under  the 
conditions  there  existing,  a necessity.  It  then  became 
firmly  established,  and  is  now  recognized  as  a most 
useful  part  of  the  railroad  organization.  It  introduces 
into  the  system  uniformity  and  stability,  causing  a 
direct  contact  with  the  government. 

Holding  in  ownership  and  themselves  operating 
the  whole  or  a large  portion  of  the  railroads  within 
their  limits,  as  so  many  of  the  German  governments 
did,  it  was  inevitable  that  the  formation  of  the  Ger- 
man empire  must  here  also  work  a new  departure. 
The  control  of  the  lines  of  communication  was  very 
essential  to  the  stability  of  the  new  imperial  system. 
Provision  in  this  respect  was  accordingly  made  in  the 
constitution  of  the  empire,  and  the  policy  to  be  pur- 
sued under  it  has  since  been  not  the  least  perplexing 
of  the  many  perplexing  questions  which  have  engaged 
the  attention  of  Prince  Bismarck.  At  first  he  seemed 
to  incline  towards  a scheme  of  general  state  owner- 
ship. All  the  railroads  were  by  degrees  to  be  pur- 
chased and  absorbed  by  the  imperial  government. 
As  a step  in  this  direction  a commission  was  ap- 
pointed which  in  1876  made  an  elaborate  report. 
This  was  submitted  to  the  Prussian  parliament, 
accompanied  by  a government  project  for  the  trans- 
fer of  the  state  roads  of  that  country  to  the  empire. 
After  a vigorous  debate,  in  which  Bismarck  himself 
took  an  active  part,  the  measure  was  passed,  though 
not  without  considerable  opposition.  Nothing,  how- 
ever, has  been  done  under  it ; on  the  contrary  the 


1 14  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 

movement  seemed  to  stop  here,  and  it  is  generally 
supposed  will  not,  at  any  rate  for  the  present,  be 
pressed  further.  It  is  further  stated  that  Bismarck 
after  full  consideration  has  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  correct  solution  of  the  problem  does  not  lie 
in  the  direction  of  state  ownership.  He  has  com- 
plained bitterly  in  the  Prussian  parliament  of  repeated 
conflicts  between  the  imperial  government  and  the 
managements  of  the  railroads,  and  not  long  since 
proposed  to  create  a special  ministry  to  take  charge 
of  the  subject  so  far  as  Prussia  was  concerned.  This 
measure  was  defeated,  and  led  to  a change  in  the 
cabinet.  Meanwhile  Baron  von  Weber,  who  is  the 
highest  German  authority  on  railroad  subjects,  has 
recently  entered  the  Prussian  service,  and  is  thus  in 
position  to  affect  the  course  of  affairs.  He  is  com- 
mitted against  the  project  of  imperial  ownership,  and 
inclines  to  the  adoption  of  a definite  policy  very 
similar  to  that  which  has  been  arrived  at  in  Great 
Britain.  He  would  leave  the  system  to  develop  in 
its  own  way,  and  to  assume  such  shape  as  circum- 
stances may  dictate.  Those  owning  the  individual 
railroads,  whether  states  or  companies,  should  be  left 
to  manage  them,  provided  they  did  so  under  close 
governmental  supervision.  In  Germany  it  should  be 
understood  this  means  much  more  than  it  does  in 
Great  Britain,  or  would  in  America.  Meanwhile  the 
German  policy  seems  to  incline  towards  at  least 
trying  the  experiment  of  government  control,  before 
having  recourse  to  government  ownership.  The 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 1 1 5 

whole  question  there,  however,  is  complicated  by 
political  and  military  considerations  which  do  not 
affect  it  either  in  Great  Britain  or  in  America. 

The  English,  the  Belgian,  the  French,  and  the 
German  are  the  four  great  railroad  systems.  With 
many  points  in  common,  each  has  peculiar  features 
deserving  of  careful  study.  In  their  political  rela- 
tions they  are  divided  into  two  groups  by  a broad 
line  of  demarkation.  On  the  one  side  of  that  line  are 
the  systems  of  the  English-speaking  race,  based  upon 
private  enterprise  and  left  for  their  regulation  to  the 
principles  of  laissez  faire,  the  laws  of  competition, 
and  of  supply  and  demand.  On  the  other  side  of 
the  line  are  the  systems  of  continental  Europe,  in  the 
creation  of  which  the  state  assumed  the  initiative, 
and  over  which  it  exercises  constant  and  watchful 
supervision.  In  applying  results  drawn  from  the 
experience  of  one  country  to  problems  which  present 
themselves  in  another,  the  difference  of  social  and 
political  habit  and  education  should  ever  be  borne  in 
mind.  Because  in  the  countries  of  continental  Eu- 
rope the  state  can  and  does  hold  close  relations, 
amounting  even  to  ownership,  with  the  railroads,  it 
does  not  follow  that  the  same  course  could  be  suc- 
cessfully pursued  in  England  or  in  America.  The 
former  nations  are  by  political  habit  administrative, 
the  latter  are  parliamentary  ; in  other  words,  France 
and  Germany  are  essentially  executive  in  their  gov- 
ernmental systems,  while  England  and  America  are 
legislative.  Now  the  executive  may  design,  construct, 


ii6 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


or  operate  a railroad;  the  legislative  never  can.  A 
country,  therefore,  with  a weak  or  unstable  execu- 
tive, or  a crude  and  imperfect  civil  service,  should 
accept  with  caution  results  achieved  under  a govern- 
ment of  bureaus.  Nevertheless,  though  conclusions 
cannot  be  adopted  in  the  gross,  there  may  be  in  them 
much  good  food  for  reflection. 

The  railroad  system  of  the  United  States,  with 
all  its  excellences  and  all  its  defects,  is  thoroughly 
characteristic  of  the  American  people.  It  grew  up 
untrammelled  by  any  theory  as  to  how  it  ought  to 
grow  ; and  developed  with  mushroom  rapidity,  with- 
out reference  to  government  or  political  systems.  In 
this  country  alone  were  the  principles  of  free  trade 
unreservedly  and  fearlessly  applied  to  it.  The  result 
has  certainly  been  wonderful,  if  not  in  all  respects 
satisfactory.  Why  it  has  not  been  wholly  satisfac- 
tory remains  to  be  explained. 

Looked  upon  as  a whole,  the  American  railroad 
system  may  now  be  said  to  have  passed,  wholly  or  in 
part,  through  three  distinct  phases  of  growth  the 
limits  of  which  are  merged  in  each  other,  though 
their  order  of  succession  is  sufficiently  clear.  First 
was  the  period  of  construction,  beginning  with  the 
year  1830  and  closing  with  the  completion  of  the 
Pacific  railroad  in  1869; — merged  with  this  period 
and  following  upon  it,  was  that  of  active  competition, 
which  reached  its  fullest  development  in  1876  ; — this 
naturally  was  followed  by  the  period  of  combination, 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


II 7 

which  first  assumed  a large  and  definite  shape  in 
1873,  and  has  since  that  gradually  but  surely  been 
working  itself  out  into  something  both  definite  and 
practical.  To  one  now  looking  back  and  reviewing 
the  whole  course  of  events,  cause  and  effect  become 
apparent.  Things  could  not  have  taken  any  course 
other  than  that  which  they  did  take, — the  logic  has 
been  inexorable.  The  whole  theory  under  which  the 
railroad  system  was  left  to  develop  itself  was  founded 
on  a theoretical  error  ; and  it  was  non  e the  less  an  error 
because,  even  if  it  had  been  recognized  as  such,  it 
could  not  have  been  remedied.  That  error  lay  in 
the  supposition,  then  universally  accepted  as  an 
axiom,  that  in  all  matters  of  trade,  competition,  if  al- 
lowed perfectly  free  play,  could  be  relied  upon  to 
protect  the  community  from  abuses.  The  efficacy 
of  railroad  competition, — expressing  itself  in  the 
form  of  general  laws  authorizing  the  freest  possible 
railroad  construction  everywhere  and  by  any  one, — 
at  an  early  day  became  almost  a cardinal  principle  of 
American  faith. 

The  people  of  the  country  in  their  political  ca- 
pacity had  faith  in  it.  Indeed,  not  to  have  had  faith 
in  it  at  that  time  would  have  seemed  almost  to  imply 
a doubt  of  the  very  principles  upon  which  the  gov- 
ernment was  established.  The  whole  political  ex- 
periment in  America  was  based  upon  the  theory  that 
the  government  should  have  the  least  possible  con- 
nection with  all  industrial  undertakings,  that  these 
undertakings  had  been  regulated  in  other  countries 


n8 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


far  too  much,  and  that  now,  in  the  New  World,  it 
was  to  be  proved  that  they  would  regulate  themselves 
best  when  most  left  alone.  The  exceptions  to  this 
rule  had  yet  to  develop  themselves.  Forty  years  ago 
they  had  not  begun,  or  had  hardly  begun,  to  develop 
themselves  at  all.  If  the  people,  and  through  the 
people  the  government,  had  faith  in  competition,  the 
private  individuals  who  constructed  the  railroads 
seemed  to  have  no  fear  of  it.  They  built  roads 
everywhere,  apparently  in  perfect  confidence  that  the 
country  would  so  develop  as  to  support  all  the  roads 
that  could  be  built.  Consequently  railroads  sprang 
up  as  if  by  magic,  and  after  they  were  constructed, 
as  it  was  impossible  to  remove  them  from  places 
where  they  were  not  wanted  to  places  where  they 
were  wanted,  they  lived  upon  the  land  where  they 
could,  and,  when  the  business  of  the  land  would 
not  support  them,  they  fought  and  ruined  each  other. 

The  country  was  of  immense  extent,  and  its 
development  under  the  stimulus  of  the  new  power 
was  unprecedentedly  rapid.  At  first,  and  during  the 
lives  of  more  than  one  generation,  it  really  seemed 
as  if  the  community  had  not  relied  upon  this  funda- 
mental law  of  competition  without  cause.  Never- 
theless, there  never  was  a time,  since  the  first  rail- 
road was  built,  when  he  who  sought  to  look  for  them 
could  not  find  in  almost  any  direction  significant  in- 
dications of  the  violation  of  a natural  law.  Local  in- 
equalities always  existed,  and  the  whole  system  was 
built  up  upon  the  principle  of  developing  competing 


THE  RAILROAD  PBOhLEM . 


I IQ 


points  at  the  expense  of  all  others.  There  were  cer- 
tain localities  in  the  country  known  as  railroad  cen- 
tres; and  these  railroad  centres  were  stimulated  into 
an  undue  growth  from  the  fact  that  competition  was 
limited  to  them.  The.  principles'' of  free  trade  did  not 
have  full  play  ; they  were  confined  to  favored  locali- 
ties. Hence  resulted  two  things:  in  the  first  place 
the  community  suffered  ; then  the  railroads.  Under 
the  hard  stress  of  local  and  through  competition  the 
most  glaring  inequafftfes  were  developed.  The  work 
of  the  railroad  centres  was  done  at  a nominal  profit, 
while  the  corporations  recompensed  themselves  by 
extorting  from  other  points  where  competition  did 
not  have  to  be  met,  the  highest  profit  which  business 
could  be  made  to  pay.  It  thus  gradually  became 
apparent,  although  men  were  very  slow  to  take  in 
the  fact,  that  immense  and  invaluable  as  were  the 
results  in  many  respects  secured  through  unlimited 
railroad  competition,  yet  so  far  as  the  essential  matter 
of  securing  to  all  reasonable  and  equal  rates  of  pay- 
ment for  similar  services  performed  was  involved,  it 
did  not  produce  the  effect  confidently  expected  of  it. 
On  the  contrary,  it  led  directly  to  systematic  dis- 
criminations and  wild  fluctuations,  and  the  more  ac- 
tive the  competition  was,  the  more  oppressive  the 
discriminations  became  and  the  less  possible  was  it 
to  estimate  the  fluctuations.  In  other  words,  while 
the  result  of  other  and  ordinary  competition  was  to 
reduce  and  equalize  prices,  that  of  railroad  competi- 
tion was  to  produce  local  inequalities  and  to  arbi- 


120 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


trarily  raise  and  depress  prices.  The  teachings  of  po- 
litical economy  were  at  fault.  The  variation  was  so 
great  that  it  was  evident  some  important  factor  in  the 
problem  had  been  overlooked. 

Though  in  the  case  of  the  railroad  system  the 
disturbance  produced  by  this  false  application  of  a 
correct  principle  was  far  more  sensibly  felt  in  Amer- 
ica than  in  any  other  country,  yet  the  reason  of  the 
difficulty  was  thought  out  elsewhere.  Much  has  been 
heard  within  the  last  few  years  of  a newly  developed 
school  of  political  and  economic  thinkers  which  is 
making  itself  felt  in  Germany,  and  the  tendency  of 
which  is  supposed  to  be  reactionary  against  English 
free  trade  and  laissez  faire.  These  German  thinkers 
have  been  laid  hold  of  in  this  country  by  the  protec- 
tionists, and  claimed  by  them  as  allies.  In  truth 
they  are  nothing  of  the  sort.  They  are  free  traders 
themselves,  but  they  declare  that  the  principles  of 
free  trade  also  are  not  of  unlimited  application  ; that, 
on  the  contrary,  experience,  and  especially  the  expe- 
rience of  the  last  few  years,  has  definitely  shown  that, 
in  the  complex  development  of  modern  life  func- 
tions are  more  and  more  developed  which,  in  their 
operation,  are  not  subject  to  the  laws  of  competition 
or  the  principles  of  free  trade,  and  which  indeed  are 
reduced  to  utter  confusion  within  and  without  if 
abandoned  to  the  working  of  those  laws.  The  more 
thorough  ascertainment  of  these  limitations  on  prin- 
ciples generally  correct  is  one  of  the  important  stud- 
ies of  the  day.  Thirty  years  ago  they  were  not 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


1 2 1 


understood  at  all ; they  are  now  understood  only  in 
part.  John  Stuart  Mill  had  a clear  though  limited 
perception  of  them  ; and  how  limited  his  perception 
was  will  be  realized  from  the  fact  that  of  the  twelve 
hundred  pages  of  his  work  on  political  economy  he 
devotes  just  four  pages  to  this  subject.  Yet  to-day 
these  limitations  are  asserting  themselves  in  a way 
which  cannot  be  ignored. 

The  traditions  of  political  economy,  therefore,  to 
the  contrary  notwithstanding,  there  are  functions  of 
modern  life,  the  number  of  which  is  also  continually 
increasing,  which  necessarily  partake  in  their  essence 
of  the  character  of  monopolies.  The  supplying  rail- 
road and  telegraph  facilities  presents  examples  of 
these  on  the  large  scale,  as  the  supplying  cities  and 
large  towns  with  water  and  gas  presents  examples  of 
them  on  a smaller  scale.  All  of  these,  and  others 
which  could  be  named,  partake  of  the  character  of 
monopolies  as  a fundamental  condition  of  their  de- 
velopment. Now  it  is  found  that,  wherever  this 
characteristic  exists,  the  effect  of  competition  is  not 
to  regulate  cost  or  equalize  production,  but  under  a 
greater  olr  less  degree  of  friction  to  bring  about  com- 
bination and  a closer  monopoly.  The  law  is  invaria- 
ble. It  knows  no  exceptions.  The  process  through 
which  it  works  itself  out  may  be  long,  but  it  is  sure. 
When  the  number  of  those  performing  any  industrial 
work  in  the  system  of  modern  life  is  necessarily 
limited  to  a few,  the  more  powerful  of  those  few  will 
inevitably  absorb  into  themselves  the  less  powerful. 

6 


122 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


The  difficulty  of  the  process  is  a mere  question  of 
degree ; its  duration  is  a mere  question  of  time.  In 
America  a great  many  agents,  though  by  no  means 
an  unlimited  number,  are  employed  in  the  work  of 
railroad  transportation,  hence  the  monopoly  is  looser 
and  the  struggle  between  the  monopolists  is  fiercer 
than  it  is  in  many  other  countries  ; hence,  also,  the 
process  of  bringing  about  a thorough  combination  is 
rendered  more  difficult  and  requires  more  time. 
None  the  less  it  goes  on. 

Where  the  extent  of  country  to  be  occupied  was 
so  vast  and  the  necessity  for  some  means  of  trans- 
portation so  great,  it  naturally  took  a number  of 
years  for  a theoretical  error  at  the  bottom  of  a sys- 
tem to  work  its  way  to  the  top.  For  a long  time  all 
went  apparently  well.  The  people  of  the  country 
saw  only  the  manifold  advantages  which  flowed  from 
a railroad  construction  which  was  stimulated  by 
every  inducement  which  could  be  held  out  to  avarice. 
Thousands  of  miles  were  built  each  year, — the  interior 
was  opened  to  the  seaboard  with  an  energy  which  out- 
did expectation, — new  appliances,  whether  of  speed, 
of  safety  or  of  economy  were  introduced  as  fast 
as  ingenuity  could  invent  them, — rates  of  fare  and 
of  freight  between  distant  points  became  lower  and 
lower,  until  what  seemed  reasonable  yesterday  was 
looked  upon  as  exorbitant  to-day, — and  altogether 
the  development  was  so  surprising  that  it  could  not 
but  excite  sensations  of  wonder  and  gratitude  which 
for  the  moment  alone  found  expression.  This  state 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


i23 


of  things-  could  not  be  permanent.  The  mania  for 
railroad  construction  which  began  in  1866,  and  cul- 
minated in  the  crash  of  1873,  brought  matters  to  a 
crisis.  As  lines  multiplied,  the  competition  increased. 
The  railroads  had  been  built  much  too  rapidly  and 
the  business  of  the  country  could  not  support  them. 
Those  immediately  in  charge  were  under  a constant 
and  severe  pressure  to  earn  money  ; and  they  earned 
it  wherever  and  however  they  could.  They  stopped 
at  nothing.  Between  those  years  it  is  safe  to  say  that 
the  idea  of  any  duty  which  a railroad  corporation  owed 
to  the  public  was  wholly  lost  sight  of.  In  the  eyes  of 
those  managing  them  the  railroads  were  mere  private 
money-making  enterprises.  They  acted  accordingly. 
If  they  were  forced  to  compete,  they  competed  sav- 
agely and  without  regard  to  consequences ; — where 
they  were  free  from  competition,  they  exacted  the 
uttermost  farthing.  There  naturally  ensued  a system 
of  sudden  fluctuations  and  inequitable  local  discrimi- 
nations which  has  scarcely  ever  been  equalled  and 
which  was  well-nigh  intolerable.  At  one  point  sev- 
eral roads  would  converge,  and  the  business  or  travel 
to  and  from  that  point  would  be  furiously  fought  over 
until  rates  became  almost  literally  nominal;  mean- 
while those  engaged  in  business  or  living  at  other 
points  but  a few  miles  away  would  be  charged  every 
penny  that  they  could  be  made  to  pay  without  be- 
ing driven  off  the  railroad  and  back  to  the  highway 
Where  goods  starting  from  the  same  point  were  to 
be  delivered  at  different  stations  on  the  line  of  the 


1 24 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


same  road,  those  forwarding  them  discovered  to  their 
cost  that  the  tariff  resembled  nothing  so  much  as  an 
undulating  line, — for  a distance  of  twenty  miles,  more 
would  have  to  be  paid  than  for  a distance  of  forty 
miles.  Those  living  between  competing  points  were 
rigidly  excluded  from  the  benefits  of  competition.  To 
such  an  outrageous  extent  was  this  carried,  that  it  be- 
came the  common  practice  where  an  entire  car-load  of 
merchandise,  destined  to  some  way  station  on  the  line 
of  a railroad,  was  paid  through  to  a competing  point 
far  beyond  on  that  line,  to  make  a large  extra  charge 
for  not  hauling  it  to  that  point,  but  dropping  it  at  its 
ultimate  destination  in  the  first  place.  It  was  exactly 
as  if  a traveller  was  to  buy  a through  ticket  from  Al- 
bany to  Buffalo,  and  the  railroad  company  were  to 
insist  not  only  on  taking  up  his  ticket  but  on  charg- 
ing him  a dollar  extra  if  he  left  the  train  at  Syracuse. 
Remonstrances  against  this  absurd  anomaly  were 
treated  by  the  officials  of  the  railroad  companies  as 
if  they  were  too  unreasonable  for  a patient  hearing. 
This  was  much  more  the  case  in  the  West  than  at  the 
East,  but  even  in  Massachusetts  when  the  state  rail- 
road commissioners  on  one  occasion  urged  upon  a 
corporation  the  injustice  of  charging  some  twenty 
dollars  extra  on  each  car-load  of  wheat  which  had 
been  paid  for  on  a through  bill  of  lading  to  the  fur- 
ther end  of  its  line  if  they  left  it  at  its  point  of  desti- 
nation one  hundred  miles  short  of  that  end,  thus 
making  a charge  of  twenty  dollars  for  not  hauling 
the  loaded  car  one  hundred  miles, — in  this  case  their 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


125 


representations  were  met  with  the  counter  proposal 
that,  if  the  consignee  preferred,  the  company  would 
haul  his  goods  by  his  door  to  the  point  to  which 
they  were  billed,  and  then  back,  charging  both  ways. 
He  might  pay  the  through  rate  forward  and  the  local 
rate  back,  or  submit  to  the  extra  charge,  just  as  he 
chose.  Besides  all  this,  however,  competition  led  to 
favoritism  of  the  grossest  character, — men  or  business 
firms  whose  shipments  by  rail  were  large  could  com- 
mand their  own  terms,  as  compared  with  those  whose 
shipments  were  small.  The  most  irritating  as  well 
as  wrongful  inequalities  were  thus  made  common  all 
over  the  land.  Every  local  settlement  and  every 
secluded  farmer  saw  other  settlements  and  other 
farmers  more  fortunately  placed,  whose  consequent 
prosperity  seemed  to  make  their  own  ruin  a question 
of  time.  Place  to  place,  or  man  to  man,  they  might 
compete ; but  where  the  weight  of  the  railroad  was 
flung  into  one  scale,  it  was  strange  indeed  if  the 
other  did  not  kick  the  beam. 

Of  course,  even  under  the  most  favorable  circum- 
stances, it  was  wholly  unlikely  that  such  a condition 
of  affairs  should  long  continue.  The  fact  that  these 
abuses  were  the  simple  and  inevitable  outcome  of  a 
public  policy  in  regard  to  railroads  which  had  from 
the  beginning  been  jealously  adhered  to  was  of  no 
consequence.  People  felt  and  did  not  reason. 
Competition  made  the  price  of  flour  and  cloth  and 
shoes  equal  and  reasonable : why  should  it  make  fares 
and  freights  unequal  and  unreasonable?  Few  in- 


T26 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


deed  were  they  who  could  be  made  to  see  that  the 
true  cause  of  complaint  was  with  an  economical  the- 
ory misapplied,  not  with  those  who  with  only  too 
much  energy  had  carried  out  the  misappled  theory  to 
its  final  logical  conclusions.  Yet  a cause  of  complaint 
did  exist,  and  to  a degree  which  made  a popular  ex- 
plosion inevitable.  In  the  case  of  the  railroad  corpo- 
rations, moreover,  the  prejudice  was  aggravated  by 
well  authenticated  rumors  of  the  gross  financial 
scandals  which  disgraced  their  management.  The 
system  was,  indeed,  fairly  honeycombed  with  job- 
bery and  corruption.  They  began  high  up  in  the 
wretched  machinery  of  the  construction  company, 
with  all  its  thimble-rig  contrivances  to  effect  the 
unseen  transfer  of  assets  from  the  treasury  of  the 
corporation  to  the  pockets  of  its  directors.  Thence 
they  spread  downward  through  the  whole  system  of 
supplies  and  contracts  and  rolling-stock  companies, 
until  it  might  not  unfairly  be  said  that  everything 
had  its  price. 

The  natural  results  followed.  In  1870  a popular 
agitation  broke  out  which  for  the  time  being  threat- 
ened to  sweep  down  not  only  all  legal  barriers  but 
every  consideration  of  self-interest ; and,  at  the  same 
time,  the  corporations  driven  to  the  verge  of  bank- 
ruptcy, if  not  fairly  over  it,  by  the  joint  effects  of  cor- 
ruption and  competition,  turned  their  thoughts  on  the 
single  chance  of  escape  which  combination  among 
themselves  held  out.  In  1873  the  Grangers  were 
electing  Judges  in  Illinois;  and  in  1874  the  railroad 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


127 


magnates  were  discussing  the  details  of  a grand  com- 
bination at  Saratoga. 

Of  the  Granger  episode  little  now  needs  to  be 
said.  That  it  did  not  originate  without  cause  has 
already  been  pointed  out.  It  is  quite  safe  to  go 
further  and  to  say  that  the  movement  was  a neces- 
sary one,  and  through  its  results  has  made  a solu- 
tion of  the  railroad  problem  possible  in  this  country. 
At  the  time  that  movement  took  shape  the  railroad 
corporations  were  in  fact  rapidly  assuming  a position 
which  could  not  be  tolerated.  Corporations,  own- 
ing and  operating  the  highways  of  commerce,  they 
claimed  for  themselves  a species  of  immunity  from 
the  control  of  the  law-making  power.  When  laws 
were  passed  with  a view  to  their  regulation,  they 
received  them  in  a way  which  was  at  once  arrogant 
and  singularly  injudicious.  The  officers  entrusted 
with  the  execution  of  those  laws  they  contemptm 
ously  ignored.  Sheltering  themselves  behind  the 
Dartmouth  College  decision,  they  practically  under- 
took to  set  even  public  opinion  at  defiance.  Indeed 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  those  representing  these 
corporations  had  at  this  juncture  not  only  become 
fully  educated  up  to  the  idea  that  the  gross  inequali- 
ties and  ruinous  discriminations  to  which  in  their  busi- 
ness they  were  accustomed  were  necessary  incidents 
to  it,  which  afforded  no  just  ground  of  complaint  to 
any  one ; but  they  also  thought  that  any  attempt  to 
rectify  them  through  legislation  was  a gross  outrage 
on  the  elementary  principles  both  of  common  sense 


128 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


and  of  constitutional  lav/.  In  other  words,  they  had 
thoroughly  got  it  into  their  heads  that  they  as  com- 
mon carriers  were  in  no  way  bound  to  afford  equal 
facilities  to  all,  and,  indeed,  that  it  was  in  the  last 
degree  absurd  and  unreasonable  to  expect  them  to 
do  so.  The  Granger  method  was  probably  as  good 
a method  of  approaching  men  in  this  frame  of  mind 
as  could  have  been  devised.  They  were  not  open  to 
reason,  from  the  simple  fact  that  their  ideas  of  what 
in  their  position  was  right  or  wrong,  reasonable  or 
unreasonable,  were  wholly  perverted.  They  were 
part  of  a system  founded  on  error ; and  that  error 
they  had  all  their  lives  been  accustomed  to  look  upon 
as  truth.  The  Granger  violence  was,  therefore,  need- 
ful to  clear  the  ground.  This  it  did  ; and  it  did  it  in 
a way  far  from  creditable  to  those  who  called  them- 
selves Grangers. 

Indeed,  the  extravagant  utterances  of  that  time 
would  even  now  seem  incredible  were  they  not  mat- 
ter of  record.  For  instance,  the  following  is  one  of 
a long  series  of  resolutions  adopted  at  a general 
convention  of  the  Granges  held  at  Springfield,  111., 
on  the  2d  of  April,  1873  : — 

Second.  The  railways  of  the  world,  except  in  those  countries 
where  they  have  been  held  under  the  strict  regulation  and  super- 
vision of  the  government,  have  proved  themselves  of  as  arbitrary 
extortion  and  opposed  to  free  institutions  and  free  commerce 
between  the  states  as  the  feudal  barons  of  the  Middle  Ages. 

This  comparison  between  the  modern  railroad 
corporations  and  the  feudal  barons,  in  spite  of  its 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


129 


grotesque  absurdity,  was  very  popular  among  the 
Granger  rhetoricians.  It  made  its  appearance  with 
great  regularity  in  nearly  all  their  more  labored  and 
ornate  productions.  In  June,  1873,  for  example, 
numerous  county  gatherings  put  forth  a declaration 
of  farmers'  grievances  and  principles,  in  which  oc- 
curred this  passage: 

“ The  history  of  the  present  railway  monopoly  is  a history  of 
repeated  injuries  and  oppressions,  all  having  in  direct  object  the 
establishment  of  an  absolute  tyranny  over  the  people  of  these 
States  unequalled  in  any  monarchy  of  the  Old  World,  and  having 
its  only  parallel  in  the  history  of  the  mediaeval  ages,  when  the 
strong  hand  was  the  only  law,  and  the  highways  of  commerce 
were  taxed  by  the  feudal  barons,  who,  from  their  strongholds, 
surrounded  by  their  armies  of  vassals,  could  lay  such  tribute 
upon  the  traveller  as  their  own  wills  alone  should  dictate.” 

As  usual,  these  wild  utterances  in  due  time  re- 
sulted in  the  enactment  of  yet  wilder  laws.  Laws 
were  demanded  which  should  regulate  the  profits, 
the  methods  of  operation,  and  the  political  relations 
of  the  railroads ; the  corporations  were  to  be  made 
to  realize,  as  the  phrase  went,  that  “ the  created  was 
not  greater  than  the  creator;"  that  the  railroads 
were  the  servants  of  the  people  and  not  their  masters. 
Here  then  ought  to  have  been  met  a complete  and 
logical  abandonment  of  the  whole  theory  of  regula- 
tion by  natural  law,  under  which  the  railroad  sys- 
tem had  been  organized  and  had  grown  up.  If  that 
theory  was  worth  anything  at  all,  the  remedy  for  the 
ills  under  which  the  community  was  suffering  would 


130 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


at  once  come  into  play.  The  railroads  were  not 
monopolies.  There  was  nothing  to  prevent  the  or- 
ganization of  new  companies  to  construct  parallel 
and  competing  lines  of  road.  Here  was  the  remedy 
through  competition  : — and  the  mere  statement  of  it 
revealed  its  utter  absurdity.  Nevertheless  the  idea 
that  from  the  very  necessity  of  the  case  uncontrolled 
railroad  competition  led  directly  to  and  was  insepar- 
able from  railroad  discriminations  and  local  inequali- 
ties obtained  no  lodgment. 

The  fact  that  the  railroad  companies  did  not  com- 
pete with  each  other  regularly  and  equally  and  mod- 
erately at  all  times  and  at  all  places  was  patent.  The 
reason  why  they  did  not  do  so  was  not  at  once  appa- 
rent, and  the  result  itself,  therefore,  by  a sort  of  gen- 
eral consent,  was  set  down  as  one  more  manifestation 
of  that  innate  perversity  common  to  all  monopolists. 
Meanwhile  not  the  slightest  degree  of  distrust  was 
felt  of  the  competitive  principle  under  the  conditions 
in  which  it  was  now  sought  to  be  applied.  That, 
throughout  the  discussion,  was  accepted  as  axiom- 
atic— a nostrum  at  once  universal  and  infallible. 

The  abandonment  of  competition  between  rail- 
roads consequently  found  no  place  in  the  philosophy 
of  Granger  legislation.  It  was,  on  the  contrary,  tena- 
ciously clung  to,  and  new  laws  were  passed  to  render 
more  illegal  than  ever  any  combination  between  com- 
peting lines.  The  remedy,  from  the  Granger  point 
of  view,  was  obvious.  As  the  trouble  was  due  to  hu- 
man perversity,  and  not  to  any  defect  in  principle, 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  1 3 I 

nothing  was  needed  to  make  things  right  but  more 
of  the  same  remedy,  liberally  supplemented  by  penal 
legislation.  If  the  Sangrado  treatment  did  not  work 
a cure,  the  blood-letting  must  go  on,  but  the  alguazil 
should  replace  the  warm  water. 

Meanwhile  the  Granger  legislation,  crude  as  it 
was  and  utterly  as  it  lacked  insight,  did  produce 
results.  That  it  did  so  was  due  wholly  to  the  fact 
that  the  states  which  enacted  the  Granger  laws  went 
further,  and  incorporated  into  them  a special  execu- 
tory force.  To  a certain  extent,  therefore,  the  state 
governments  assumed  the  management  of  the  rail- 
roads. In  so  far  as  they  did  this,  the  Granger  legis- 
lation was  logical  and  consequently  effective.  Gov- 
ernment regulation  is  a practical  substitute  for  com- 
petition. Apart  from  this,  it  was  in  no  respect  a 
success.  If  experience  has  proved  anything  conclu- 
sively, it  has  certainly  proved  that  mere  abstract  laws 
aimed  at  the  inequalities  which  arise  out  of  railroad 
competition  are  of  no  avail.  Whether  placed  on  the 
statute  books  as  laws  generally  applicable,  or  incor- 
porated at  length  into  special  charters,  the  result  has 
been  the  same.  The  precedents  are  innumerable, 
and  the  Granger  experiments  did  but 'add  to  their 
number.  The  ingenuity  of  lawyers,  working  on  the 
intricacies  of  a most  complicated  system,  has  never 
failed  to  make  a broad  path  through  the  meshes  of 
merely  declaratory  statutes.  The  Granger  legisla- 
tures, though  with  great  reluctance,  recognized  this 
fact.  Boards  of  commissioners  were  accordingly  pro- 


*32 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


vided,  and  to  them  was  entrusted  a general  supervis- 
ion over  the  railroads  and  the  duty  of  making  the 
new  legislation  effective.  The  organization  and  ex- 
perience of  these  commissions  is,  from  the  govern- 
mental point  of  view,  the  most  important  and  in- 
structive phase  in  the  development  of  the  railroad 
problem  during  the  last  few  years. 

It  has  already  been  pointed  out  that  the  inclina- 
tion of  the  American  mind  is  not  bureaucratic. 
Recourse  is  had  in  this  country  to  commissions,  as 
our  bureaus  are  called,  with  great  reluctance.  Ex- 
perience, it  must  also  be  admitted,  fully  justifies  this 
feeling  of  distrust  ; as  a rule  they  do  not  work  well. 
Not  only  do  they  develop  in  too  many  cases  a sin- 
gular aptitude  for  all  jobbery,  but,  even  when  hon- 
estly composed,  they  rarely  accomplish  much. 
Once  created,  also,  they  can  never  be  gotten  rid  of. 
They  ever  after  remain  part  of  the  machinery  of 
government,  drawing  salaries  and  apparently  making 
work  for  themselves  to  do.  The  reason  is  obvious.  In 
America  there  are  not  many  specialists,  nor  have  the 
American  people  any  great  degree  of  faith  in  them. 
The  principle  that  all  men  are  created  equal  before 
the  law  has  been  stripped  of  its  limitations,  until  in 
the  popular  mind  it  has  become  a sort  of  cardinal 
article  of  political  faith  that  all  men  are  equal  for  all 
purposes.  Accordingly,  in  making  up  commissions 
to  deal  with  the  most  complicated  issues  arising  out 
of  our  modern  social  and  industrial  organization, 
those  in  authority  are  very  apt  to  conclude  that  one 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


133 


man  can  do  the  work  about  as  well  as  another.  The 
result  is  what  might  naturally  be  expected ; and  the 
system  is  made  responsible  for  it.  All  this  received 
pointed  illustration  in  the  case  of  the  Granger  com- 
missions. In  the  first  place  the  country  did  not 
contain  any  trained  body  of  men  competent  to  do 
the  work.  They  had  got  to  be  found  and  then  edu- 
cated. In  the  next  place  the  work  was  one  of  great 
difficulty  and  extreme  delicacy.  The  commissioners 
were  to  represent  the  government  in  a momentous 
struggle  with  the  most  compact  and  formidable 
interest  in  the  country.  They  were  to  be  pitted 
against  the  ablest  men  the  community  could  supply, 
thoroughly  acquainted  with  their  business  and  with 
unlimited  resources  at  their  disposal.  Finally  the 
test  of  success  was  to  be  that,  under  these  circum- 
stances and  in  the  face  of  these  difficulties,  the  com- 
missioners should  develop  the  crude  original  laws 
placed  in  their  hands  into  a rational  and  effective 
system. 

It  was  from  the  beginning,  therefore,  obvious 
that  no  high  standard  of  success  could  reasonably  be 
hoped  for  from  the  Granger  commissions.  They 
were  far  too  heavily  handicapped.  In  the  first  place 
the  executives  of  the  states  in  selecting  their  mem- 
bers not  infrequently  seemed  to  regard  any  antece- 
dent familiarity  with  the  railroad  system  as  a total 
disqualification.  So  afraid  were  they  of  a bias,  that 
they  sought  out  men  whose  minds  were  a blank. 
Farmers,  land-surveyors,  men  of  business  and  poli- 


134 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


ticians  were  selected.  There  were,  of  course,  excep- 
tions to  this  remark,  and  some  very  competent  men 
were  appointed  who  did  excellent  work  so  long  as 
they  remained  in  office.  But  a long  continuance  in 
office  was  again  looked  upon  as  undesirable,  and 
these  men  were  either  speedily  removed  to  make 
way  for  incompetents,  or  they  voluntarily  passed 
into  the  employ  of  the  railroad  corporations  before 
they  had  fairly  mastered  the  situation.*  Above  and 
beyond  all  this,  however,  these  commissions  began 
their  work  in  a false  position,  and  they  never  extri- 
cated themselves  from  it.  They  were  not  judicial 
tribunals.  They  ever  reflected  the  angry  complex- 
ion of  the  movement  out  of  which  they  had  originat- 

* There  could  not  be  a better  illustration  of  the  shifting  charac- 
ter of  these  boards  under  the  system  in  use  in  the  states  of  the 
West  than  has  been  fuinished  in  the  case  of  that  of  Illinois.  It  consists 
of  three  members.  The  original  appointments  were  made  July  1st, 
1871.  These  commissioners  went  out  of  office  and  an  entirely  new 
set  were  appointed  on  March  13th,  1873.  The  chairman  of  the  new 
board  died  in  the  succeeding  November,  and  a successor  was  ap- 
pointed. These  commissioners  held  office  until  February  21st,  1877, 
when  they  all  retired,  and  were  succeeded  by  the  present  board. 
Three  complete  changes  in  less  than  six  years,  with  one  additional 
vacancy  occasioned  by  death.  Under  these  circumstances  a remark 
in  its  last  report  that  “ the  Commission,  ever  since  the  time  of  its 
organization,  has  labored  under  embarrassments  which  have  deprived 
it  of  the  ability  to  be  as  useful  to  the  people  ” as  it  might  have  been, 
seems  in  no  way  unreasonable.  But  who  is  responsible?  Certainly 
not  the  commissioners,  who  by  no  possible  exertion  of  their  own  dur- 
ing their  brief  tenure  of  office  could  have  qualified  themselves  to 
perform  its  duties.  The  railroad  corporations  manage  things  differ 
ently. 


2* 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


135 


ed.  They  were  where  they  were,  not  to  study  a dif- 
ficult problem  and  to  guide  their  steps  by  the  light 
of  investigation.  Nothing  of  this  sort  was,  as  a rule, 
expected  of  them.  On  the  contrary  they  were  there 
to  prosecute.  The  test  of  their  performance  of  duty 
was  to  be  sought  in  the  degree  of  hostility  they 
manifested  to  the  railroad  corporations.  In  a word 
they  represented  force. 

That  under  these  circumstances  they  succeeded 
at  all  is  the  true  cause  of  astonishment  ; not  that 
they  succeeded  but  partially.  That  they  did  suc- 
ceed was  due  solely  to  the  incorrigible  folly  and  pas- 
sionate love  of  fighting  which  seems  inherent  in  the 
trained  American  railroad  official.  Placed  as  they 
were,  entirely  unfamiliar  with  the  difficult  questions 
they  were  compelled  to  confront,  lacking  confidence 
in  themselves  and  very  much  afraid  of  their  oppo- 
nents, had  those  opponents  seen  fit  to  be  even  mod- 
erately civil  and  deferential  to  them,  the  position  of 
the  commissioners  would  have  been  rendered  ex- 
tremely difficult.  Had  the  representatives  of  the 
railroad  corporations,  with  their  vast  resources  and 
intimate  acquaintance  with  the  subject,  been  wise 
enough  to  take  the  initiative  and  meet  the  commis- 
sioners half  way,  it  would  have  been  strange  indeed 
if  they  had  not  succeeded  in  impressing  upon  them 
a sense  of  the  difficulty  of  their  task,  and  so  mate- 
rially affected  their  action.  Instead  of  this  they 
simply  ignored  them.  P"or  instance,  when  the  newly 
organized  California  board  requested  one  corporation 


136  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 

to  forward  the  passes  which  would  enable  the  com- 
missioners to  go  over  its  road,  the  passes  came  accom- 
panied by  a denial  of  the  “ validity  of  the  law,”  and 
a statement  that  they  were  sent  “ not  in  obedience 
to  said  Act,  but  merely  as  an  act  of  courtesy  to  the 
members  of  the  Board  and  their  Secretary.”  Even 
in  Massachusetts,  the  mere  suggestion  of  the  com- 
missioners in  1871  to  the  railroad  corporations  that 
they  should  carefully  revise  their  tariffs,  was  met  by 
one  General  Manager  with  the  astounding  reply  that 
“ he  had  not  supposed,  and  did  not  now  suppose 
that  the  Commission  intends  to  seriously  attempt 
advising  the  trained  and  experienced  managers  of 
roads  in  this  Commonwealth  upon  the  details  of  their 
duty.”  In  the  West,  during  the  years  1872-3,  if  a 
railroad  official  was  asked  what  course  the  compa- 
nies proposed  to  pursue  in  regard  to  the  new  legis- 
lation, the  usual  answer  was  that  they  did  not  pro- 
pose to  pay  any  attention  whatever  to  it.  Imagine 
the  English  corporations  thus  coolly  setting  Parlia- 
ment at  defiance  ! Naturally  this  impolitic  course 
not  only  incensed  the  commissioners,  but,  what  was 
of  far  more  consequence,  it  strengthened  their  hands. 
The  popular  feeling,  strong  enough  before,  was  inten- 
sified. The  agitation  was  thus  kept  alive  until  the 
decision  of  the  courts  of  last  resort  was  obtained, 
which  fortunately  placed  the  railroads  completely  at 
the  mercy  of  the  legislatures.  Nothing  short  of  this 
would  apparently  have  sufficed  to  force  them  out  of 
their  attitude  of  stupid,  fighting  defiance.  This  re 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


13  7 


suit,  however,  once  arrived  at,  they  immediately 
recovered  their  senses,  and  with  them  their  strength. 
They  became  at  once  compliant  and — formidable. 
Their  knowledge,  their  skill,  their  money  and  their 
influence  began  to  tell.  Driven  by  brute  force  out 
of  the  utterly  untenable  position  in  which  they  had 
sought  to  entrench  themselves,  the  moment  they 
reconciled  themselves  to  the  use  of  the  weapons  of 
protection  customary  in  civilized  communities  mat- 
ters began  sensibly  to  improve.  Not  that  the  prob- 
lem was  touched,  for  discrimination  and  inequality, 
competitive  business  and  local  combinations,  still 
remained  inherent  in  the  system.  An  obligation  to 
the  public  was,  however,  recognized.  It  was  no  long- 
er claimed  that  railroads  were  mere  private  business 
enterprises,  and  the  abuses  incident  to  their  compe- 
tition among  themselves  were  at  least  softened  down 
by  the  absence  of  that  old  arbitrary  spirit  which  had 
so  aggravated  hardships.  The  laws  were  sufficiently 
complied  with  to  remove  the  more  flagrant  causes 
of  complaint,  and  the  practical  results  thus  secured 
through  the  Granger  agitation  were  far  more  con- 
siderable than  has  been  generally  supposed. 

Fortunately,  while  in  the  more  western  states  of 
the  Union  years  were  being  wasted  in  a mere  pre- 
liminary struggle,  the  question  in  another  part  of  the 
country  had  from  the  beginning  taken  a different 
shape,  and  one  far  more  promising  of  results.  Owing 
to  other  conditions  of  railroad  ownership  and  a more 
composed  state  of  the  public  mind,  the  East  afforded 


138 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM, 


a better  field  for  profitable  discussion  than  the  West. 
Various  state  railroad  commissions  already  existed 
in  that  section,  but  in  1869  one  was  organized  in 
Massachusetts  on  a somewhat  novel  principle,  and  a 
principle  in  curious  contrast  with  that  which  has 
just  been  described  as  subsequently  adopted  in  the 
West.  In  the  West  the  fundamental  idea  behind 
every  railroad  act  was  force  ; — the  commission  repre- 
sented the  constable.  In  the  Massachusetts  act  the 
fundamental  idea  was  publicity  ; — the_  commission 
represented  public  opinion.  The  law  creating  the 
board  and  defining  its  field  of  action  was  clumsily 
drawn,  and  throughout  it  there  was  apparent  a 
spirit  of  distrust  in  its  purpose.  In  theory  an 
experiment,  in  reality  it  was  a makeshift.  The 
powers  conferred  on  the  commissioners  hardly 
deserved  the  name ; and  such  as  they  were,  they 
were  carefully  hedged  about  with  limitations  against 
their  abuse.  Accordingly  when  the  commissioners 
entered  upon  their  duties  they  were  at  first  inclined 
to  think  that  they  could  hardly  save  themselves  from 
falling  into  contempt  from  mere  lack  of  ability  to 
compel  respect  for  their  decisions.  In  fact,  how- 
ever, the  law  could  not  have  been  improved.  Had 
it  not  been  a flagrant  legislative  guess,  it  would  have 
been  an  inspiration.  The  only  appeal  provided  was 
to  publicity.  The  board  of  commissioners  was  set  up 
as  a sort  of  lens  by  means  of  which  the  otherwise  scat- 
tered rays  of  public  opinion  could  be  concentrated 
to  a focus  and  brought  to  bear  upon  a given  point. 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


139 


The  commissioners  had  to  listen,  and  they  might  in- 
vestigate and  report  ; — they  could  do  little  more. 
Accordingly  they  were  compelled  to  study  their 
subject,  and  with  each  question  which  came  before 
them  they  had  to  stand  or  fall  on  the  reasons  they 
presented  for  their  conclusions.  They  could  not 
take  refuge  in  silence.  Whenever  they  attempted  to 
do  so  they  speedily  found  themselves  in  trouble. 
They  had,  as  each  case  came  up,  to  argue  the  side  of 
the  corporations  or  of  the  public,  as  the  case  might 
be ; but  always  to  argue  it  openly,  and  in  a way 
which  showed  that  they  understood  the  subject  and 
were  at  least  honest  in  their  convictions.  Placed 
from  the  beginning  in  this  position,  the  board  was 
singularly  fortunate  in  the  permanence  with  which 
its  members  were  continued  in  office.  But  two 
individual  changes  were  made  in  it  during  nine 
years,  and  it  has  undergone  no  change  during  the  last 
six.  Accordingly  it  had  a chance  to  outlive  its  inex- 
perience and  profit  by  its  own  blunders,  which  natu- 
rally were  at  first  neither  trifling  nor  infrequent. 
The  result  was  necessarily  as  different  from  that 
reached  at  the  West,  as  were  the  conditions  under 
which  it  was  reached.  The  board,  in  the  first  place, 
became  of  necessity  a judicial  in  place  of  a prosecut- 
ing tribunal.  It  naturally  had  often  to  render  decis- 
ions upon  matters  of  complaint  which  came  under  its 
cognizance  in  favor  of  the  railroad  corporations ; — 
whether  it  decided  in  their  favor  or  against  them, 
however,  its  decisions  carried  no  weight  other  than 


140 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


that  derived  from  the  reasons  given  for  them.  The 
commissioners  were  consequently  under  the  necessity 
of  cultivating  friendly  relations  with  the  railroad  of- 
ficials, and  had  to  inspire  them,  if  they  could,  with  a 
confidence  in  their  knowledge  and  fairness.  Without 
that  they  could  not  hope  to  sustain  themselves.  On 
the  other  hand,  their  failure  was  imminent  unless 
they  so  bore  themselves  as  to  satisfy  the  public  that 
they  were  absolutely  independent  of  corporate  influ- 
ence, and  could  always  be  relied  upon  to  fearlessly 
investigate  and  impartially  decide. 

Undesignedly  the  Massachusetts  legislators  had 
rested  their  law  on  the  one  great  social  feature  which 
distinguishes  modern  civilization  from  any  other  of 
which  we  have  a record, — the  eventual  suprem- 
acy of  an  enlightened  public  opinion.  The  line 
of  policy  thus  happily  initiated  was  carefully  pur- 
sued. New  and  wider  powers  were,  year  by  year, 
conferred  upon  the  board,  but  always  in  the  same 
direction, — powers  to  investigate  and  report.  The 
commissioners  meanwhile  were  not  slow  to  realize 
the  advantage  of  their  position,  and  have  repeatedly 
put  themselves  on  record  as  desiring  no  more  arbi- 
trary powers, — as  feeling  themselves  indeed  stronger 
without  them.  In  1876,  this  policy  reached  its  final 
result,  as  the  legislature  then  placed  the  entire  sys- 
tem of  accounts  kept  by  the  corporations  under  the 
direct  supervision  of  the  board.  Its  power  in  this 
respect  was  unlimited.  Not  only  was  it  authorized 
to  prescribe  a uniform  system  upon  which  those 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . I4I 

accounts  should  be  kept,  but  they  were  also  to  be 
kept  under  the  immediate  and  constant  supervision 
of  its  officers,  and  on  proper  application  the  books 
were  to  be  publicly  investigated.  In  view  of  the 
notorious  scandals  which  have  made  “ railroad 
financiering  ” a by-word  for  whatever  is  financially 
loose,  corrupt  and  dishonest,  the  scope  and  signifi- 
cance of  this  measure  does  not  need  to  be  dwelt 
upon.  It  went  to  the  root  of  the  matter.  It 
opened  to  light  all  the  dark  places.  In  France  only, 
it  is  believed,  had  a similarpower  been  asserted  ; but 
there,  its  exercise  was  based  on  the  large  pecuniary 
interest  the  government  had  in  the  railroad  proper- 
ties. It  was  a partner,  and  as  such  concerned  in  ail 
their  transactions.  In  Massachusetts  a different 
ground  was  taken.  The  indisputable  fact  was  rec- 
ognized that  those  corporations  are  so  large  and  so 
far  removed  from  the  owners  of  their  securities,  and 
the  community  is  so  deeply  concerned  in  their 
doings  and  condition,  that  the  law-making  power 
both  has  a right  and  is  in  duty  bound  to  insist  on 
that  publicity  as  respects  their  affairs  without  which 
abuses  cannot  be  guarded  against.  No  where  has 
the  soundness  of  this  doctrine  received  such  copious 
illustration  as  in  America  during  the  last  few  years 
Singularly  enough  also,  this  act  was  passed  not  only 
without  opposition  from  the  railroad  companies  as 
a body,  but  with  the  active  assent  of  many  of  them. 
When  it  took  effect  the  corporations  were  sum- 
moned together  by  the  commissioners  and  invited 


142 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


to  assist,  through  a committee  of  their  accountants, 
in  preparing  a uniform  system  of  accounts.  They 
did  so ; and  the  system  thus  prepared  by  them,  after 
being  approved  by  the  board,  was  put  in  operation. 
The  accounts  of  all  the  Massachusetts  roads  have 
since  been  kept  in  practical  accordance  with  it. 

This  measure  carried  the  Massachusetts  method 
of  dealing  with  the  railroad  question  to  its  ultimate 
point  of  development  under  a state  government. 
No  greater  degree  of  publicity  was  possible.  The 
system  was  perfectly  simple,  but  none  the  less  logi- 
cal and  practical.  It  amounted  to  little  more  than 
the  establishment  of  a permanent  board  of  arbitra- 
tion, acting  without  any  of  the  formality,  expense 
and  delay  of  courts  of  law.  On  each  question  which 
came  before  it, — whether  brought  to  its  notice  by 
means  of  a postal  card  or  through  the  action  of  a 
city  government, — this  board  was  to  make  an  inves- 
tigation. If  wrongs  and  grievances  were  made  to 
appear,  and  no  measure  of  redress  could  be  secured, 
the  appeal  was  to  the  courts  or  the  legislature,  the 
board  still  being  the  motive  force.  Thus  on  all 
questions,  not  strictly  legal,  arising  out  of  the  rela- 
tions of  the  railroad  corporations, — whether  among 
themselves,  with  the  community  as  a whole  or  with 
individuals, — a body  of  experts,  supposed  to  be 
skilled,  was  provided,  who  were  clothed  with  full 
inquisitorial  powers  and  whose  duty  it  was,  whether 
moved  thereto  by  facts  within  their  own  knowledge 
or  brought  to  their  knowledge  through  the  interven- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


M3 


tion  of  others,  to  investigate  the  doings  or  condition 
of  the  corporations,  and  to  lay  the  resulting  facts  in 
detail  before  the  public.  Without  remedial  or  cor- 
rective power  themselves,  behind  them  stood  the 
legislature  and  the  judiciary  ready  to  be  brought 
into  play  should  any  corporation  evince  an  unrea- 
sonable spirit  of  persistence,  when  once  clearly 
shown  to  be  in  the  wrong. 

The  policy  thus  described  would  seem  to  have 
worked  sufficiently  well  in  Massachusetts.  The  com- 
mission has  certainly  succeeded  in  sustaining  itself, 
for,  while  at  every  session  the  legislature  has 
conferred  upon  it  new  powers,  always  in  the  same 
direction,  the  railroad  corporations  have  never 
appeared  in  opposition  to  it  as  a body.  The 
particular  measures  recommended  by  it  have  not,  of 
course,  always  been  looked  upon  with  favor  by  the 
corporations,  nor  adopted  by  the  legislature.  This 
also  has  been  fortunate,  as  the  opposition  and  con- 
sequent delays  thus  encountered  have  given  the 
commissioners  time  to  reconsider  many  of  the  con- 
clusions which  they  had  reached  and,  if  need  be,  to 
revise  them.  This  they  have  frequently  done.  That 
a commission  organized  on  a like  basis  in  any  of 
the  western  states  between  the  years  1870  and  1875, 
could  have  accomplished  the  work  there  to  be  done 
is,  to  say  the  least,  improbable.  It  could  have  com- 
manded the  confidence  of  neither  side,  and  would 
have  been  listened  to  by  neither.  The  issue  then 
and  there  presented  had  to  be  fought  out  with  other 


144 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


weapons  than  written  reports.  Now  that  it  has 
been  fought  out  and  decided,  the  question  presents 
itself  in  a different  aspect.  But  it  has  been  denied 
that  a similar  policy  would,  even  under  the  conditions 
which  now  exist,  succeed  in  the  more  western  states, 
on  the  ground  that  the  railroad  corporations  of  that 
section  are  not  so  sensitive  to  the  public  opinion  about 
them  as  those  of  Massachusetts.  They  are  not  owned 
in  the  West,  and  the  absentee  owner  is  currently 
supposed  to  care  nothing  for  the  West,  its  interests, 
feelings  or  sentiments.  As  to  the  local  management, 
that  is  in  the  hands  of  salaried  subordinates  who  are 
neither  expected  nor  disposed  to  serve  two  masters. 
Every  one  at  all  acquainted  with  the  real  facts  in 
the  case  knows  perfectly  well  to  how  little  weight 
this  line  of  reasoning  is  entitled.  The  conditions 
stated  are,  on  the  contrary,  exactly  those  in  which 
such  a machinery  as  that  in  use  in  Massachusetts 
would  be  peculiarly  useful  and  effective.  So  far  from 
being  insensible  to  public  opinion  in  the  West,  the 
eastern  owner  of  western  railroad  securities  is  in  fact 
peculiarly  sensitive  to  it.  The  rule  that  the  remote 
and  unknown  is  always  formidable  applies  in  his 
case  as  well  as  in  most  others,  and  heretofore  it  has 
been  by  no  means  one  of  the  least  difficulties  of  the 
western  railroad  situation  that  no  machinery  has  ex- 
isted through  which  the  voice  of  complaint  could  be 
carried  over  the  head  of  the  local  manager  directly 
home  to  the  foreign  proprietor.  It  is  rarely  indeed 
that  satisfactory  results  are  brought  about  through 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


145 


any  dealings  with  subordinates.  Nor  is  this  remark 
true  of  railroads  alone.  Where  any  good  cause  of 
complaint  exists,  the  local  managers  are  usually  more 
or  less  responsible  for  it.  Men  of  routine,  they  as  a 
rule  can  see  only  their  own  side  of  any  question  ; 
above  all,  they  rarely  know  when  to  yield,  and  are  apt 
to  resent  interference  as  if  it  were  an  insult.  The 
true  way  would  be  to  go  unceremoniously  over  them. 
The  owner  is  the  man.  In  the  case  of  the  western 
railroads,  however,  the  foreign  owner  has  naturally 
looked  upon  the  Granger  commissioner  as  the  willing 
agent  of  demagogues  and  communists, — their  mere 
attorney,  bound  to  prosecute  and  annoy,  right  or 
wrong  ; — on  the  other  hand,  the  commissioner  has 
not  hesitated  to  give  his  opinion  of  the  foreign 
owner  as  a “ robber  baron/’  a “ bloated  bondholder” 
and  “a  money  shark.”  To  one  who  has  had  an  op- 
portunity to  look  behind  the  scenes  on  either  side  a 
wilder  case  of  mutual  misapprehension  could  not 
well  have  been  imagined.  A great  advance  towards 
a better  condition  of  affairs  in  this  respect  has,  how- 
ever, been  secured  during  the  last  year,  through  the 
action  of  the  Iowa  legislature  in  repealing  the  so- 
called  “ Potter”  law,  and  substituting  for  it  a com- 
mission practically  organized  on  the  Massachusetts 
plan.  It  will  only  remain  for  those  who  compose 
that  commission  to  fairly  try  the  effect  of  intelligent 
public  discussion  as  a substitute  for  ignorant  force. 
That  the  experiment  should  now  be  tried  by  them, 
and  made  to  succeed,  is  of  the  utmost  importance  ; 
7 


146 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


for  if  it  does  succeed  the  whole  movement  in  the 
West  will  be  advanced  by  one  entire  stage.  The 
decision  of  the  Supreme  Court  in  the  Granger  cases 
having  finally  settled  the  legal  relations  of  the  par- 
ties, the  discussions  before  this  board  and  its  conse- 
quent action  may  gradually  establish  them  on  a 
friendly  and  intelligible  basis. 

No  comprehensive  solution  of  the  American  rail- 
road problem  need,  however,  now  or  at  any  time,  be 
anticipated  from  action  of  the  government.  The 
statesman,  no  matter  how  sagacious  he  may  be,  can 
but  build  with  the  materials  he  finds  ready  for  his 
hand.  He  cannot  call  things  into  existence  nor,  in- 
deed, can  he  even  greatly  hasten  their  growth.  If  he 
is  to  succeed,  he  must  have  the  conditions  necessary 
to  success.  So  far  as  the  railroad  system  of  this  coun- 
try is  concerned  in  its  relations  to  the  government, 
everything  is  as  yet  clearly  in  the  formative  condi- 
tion. Nothing  is  ripe.  That  system  is  now,  with 
far  greater  force  and  activity  than  ever  before,  itself 
shaping  all  the  social,  political  and  economical  con- 
ditions which  surround  it.  The  final  result  is  proba- 
bly yet  quite  remote,  and  will  be  reached  only  by 
degrees.  When  it  comes,  also,  it  will  assuredly  work 
itself  out  ; probably  in  a very  commonplace  way. 
The  development  will  then  unquestionably  be  found 
to  have  been  correspondent  ; that  is,  consciously  or 
unconsciously,  the  government  on  one  side  and  the 
railroad  system  on  the  other  will  have  worked  to- 
wards each  other.  Whether  travelling  on  lines  nearly 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


147 


parallel,  or  which  seem  gently  to  converge  or  to 
sharply  diverge,  or  even  to  run  counter  to  each  other, 
we  may  rest  assured  that,  whether  we  see  it  or  not, 
they  are  steadily  in  the  United  States,  as  in  France, 
England  and  Germany,  doing  this  now. 

Hitherto  the  attempt  has  been  to  show  how  far 
the  process  of  governmental  development  has  as  yet 
gone  in  America  towards  this  common  ground.  It 
is  not  much  and  can  be  briefly  summarized.  So  far 
as  legislation,  pure  and  simple,  is  concerned,  no  pro- 
gress at  all  has  been  made.  The  laws  intended  to 
abstractly  solve  the  difficulties  presented  have  been 
mere  copies,  whether  intentional  or  not,  of  similar 
acts  long  since  passed  elsewhere,  and  the  utter  futility 
of  which  is  denied  by  no  one.  Passing  on  to  the 
more  positive  results,  the  essential  fact  that  railroad 
corporations  are  amenable  to  the  legislative  power 
has  been  completely  established  in  the  West  ; while 
in  the  East  the  influence  of  publicity  and  the  result- 
ing force  of  public  opinion  as  a power  adequate  to 
all  necessary  control  of  the  railroad  corporations  have 
been  tested  to  a certain  extent.  The  real  issue, 
however,  has  not  yet  been  touched  ; for  all  that  has 
yet  taken  place  is  little  more  than  the  skirmishing 
which  precedes  a decisive  engagement.  Hitherto 
the  question  has  been  confined  within  state  limits ; 
but  the  problem  in  its  full  magnitude  and  complexity 
is  co-extensive  with  that  continental  field  in  which 
Congress  alone  has  “ power  to  regulate  commerce 
between  the  states.”  It  is  there,  as  the  result  of  an 


I4§ 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


uncontrolled  and  an  as  yet  uncontrollable  competi- 
tion, that  those  harsh  inequities  manifest  themselves 
which  have  hitherto  baffled  all  attempts  at  regu- 
lation. 

It  is  now  necessary  to  turn  from  the  side  of  the 
question  which  relates  to  the  government,  and  to 
consider  that  which  relates  to  the  railroad  corpora- 
tions. It  will  be  found  that  they  also  have  made 
progress  within  the  last  few  years.  There  is  no  oc- 
casion to  go  back  beyond  1873.  At  that  time  the 
unnaturally  rapid  construction  which  had  for  ten 
years  been  going  on  produced  its  result.  A general 
collapse  took  place.  In  that  collapse  the  railroad  in- 
terest from  the  first  suffered  more  severely  than  any 
other,  and  a vast  number  of  corporations  were  forced 
into  bankruptcy,  either  because  the  country  did  not 
afford  a sufficient  business  to  support  them  or  be- 
cause such  business  as  it  did  afford  was  fought  over 
and  competed  for  until  it  ceased  to  be  worth  possess- 
ing. Bankruptcy,  again,  became  merely  the  process 
through  which  absorption  was  carried  on  ; but  it  was 
a terribly  exhausting  process.  It  was  competition 
run  mad.  So  long  as  the  struggle  was  confined  to 
solvent  roads,  or  to  roads  which  had  not  yet  resigned 
themselves  to  a condition  of  chronic  insolvency, 
something  might  be  predicated  in  regard  to  it.  There 
was  a point  at  which  the  owners  of  the  railroads 
would  cease  to  be  willing  to  do  business  in  a man- 
ner which  seemed  likely  to  result  only  in  their 
inevitable  ruin.  The  moment  that  point  was  reached 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


149 


and  the  conviction  was  fairly  forced  upon  the  minds 
of  the  contending  parties  that  a conflict  further 
prolonged  would  lead  to  this  result  and  that  shortly, 
then  the  moment  for  an  agreement  or  for  a combi- 
nation had  arrived.  They  invariably  came  together 
and  sought  to  save  themselves  at  the  expense  of 
the  community.  In  other  words,  there  was  always 
a point,  so  long  as  solvent  roads  only  were  con- 
cerned, at  which  competition  naturally  and  quietly 
resulted  in  combination.  This,  however,  was  true 
only  of  solvent  corporations.  But  the  effect  of 
the  crisis  of  1873  was  sharply  to  divide  the  railroad 
system  of  the  whole  country,  and  more  particularly 
the  railroad  system  of  the  West,  into  two  classes  : 
the  solvent  roads  and  the  insolvent  roads.  The 
trunk  lines  mainly  belonged  to  the  former  class,  and 
the  latter  class  comprised  certain  of  the  trunk  lines 
and  many,  if  indeed  in  the  West  not  a majority,  of 
what  are  known  as  the  cross  lines  and  the  side  lines. 

Between  the  solvent  roads  and  the  roads  thus 
bankrupt  a new  form  of  competition  then  developed 
itself.  The  bankrupt  roads  were  operated  not  for 
profit,  apparently,  but  to  secure  business  ; business 
at  any  price.  If  it  was  paying  business,  so  much  the 
better  ; if,  however,  the  business  would  not  pay,  it 
was  better  than  no  business  at  all.  Accordingly, 
the  position  of  the  solvent  lines  soon  became  almost 
untenable.  They  found  themselves  forced  to  decide 
whether  to  lose  their  business  entirely  and  to  see  it 
pass  away  from  them  to  rival  lines,  or  to  retain  that 


150  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 

business  by  doing  it  at  a dead  loss,  which  seemed 
inevitably  to  endanger  their  ultimate  solvency  also. 
Such  competition  as  this  could  not  terminate  in  the 
usual  combination.  The  difficulty  was  exceptional, 
and  unless  some  new  method  of  solution  could  be 
devised,  must  be  left  to  solve  itself. 

Accordingly,  in  the  summer  of  1873,  those  man- 
aging the  principal  through  lines  running  east  and 
west  met  together  in  conference.  Commodore  Van- 
derbilt was  then  passing  the  vacation  time  after  his 
usual  manner  at  Saratoga.  To  Saratoga  the  repre- 
sentatives of  the  other  lines  accordingly  found  their 
way,  and  there  took  place  a consultation  which  be- 
came subsequently  famous  as  the  “ Saratoga  Confer- 
ence.” That  conference  resulted,  it  is  true,  only  in  a 
scheme  which  soon  proved  abortive ; nevertheless  it 
was  deserving  of  all  the  temporary  notoriety  it 
achieved,  for  it  will  probably  be  found  to  have 
marked  an  era  in  the  history  of  American  railroad 
development ; the  era  of  what  may,  perhaps,  be 
known  as  the  Trunk-line  Protectorate.  There  were 
five  rival  through  routes.  Chief  among  them  was 
the  New  York  Central.  North  of  the  New  York 
Central  was  the  Grand  Trunk,  the  through  route  of 
Canada.  South  of  it  lay  three  other  competing 
lines  : the  Erie,  the  Pennsylvania,  and  the  Balti- 
more & Ohio.  Of  those  lines  three  only,  with  their 
connections,  were  represented  at  the  Saratoga  con- 
ference, or  agreed  to  its  conclusions.  These  were 
the  New  York  Central,  the  Erie,  and  the  Pennsyb 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  I 5 1 

vania.  At  the  time,  the  results  of  the  Saratoga 
conference  excited  alarm  and  popular  clamor 
throughout  the  country.  It  was  looked  upon  as  a 
movement  against  public  policy,  and  the  plan  for 
operating  the  combined  roads  which  resulted  from 
its  deliberations  was  denounced  as  one  which,  if 
successfully  carried  out,  must  necessarily  result  in 
the  destruction  of  all  competition  for  carriage  be- 
tween the  sea-board  and  the  West,  and  as  conse- 
quently turning  over  to  a band  of  heartless  monop- 
plists  the  vital  work  of  transporting  the  cereals  of  the 
interior  to  their  market.  The  cry  of  the  “ railroad 
kings  ” and  “ railroad  extortioners  ” was  at  once 
raised  from  almost  every  quarter.  Meanwhile  this 
clamor,  like  most  popular  clamors,  had  little  real 
cause.  The  essential  principle  of  the  Saratoga 
combination  lay  in  fact  merely  in  the  substitution 
of  an  open  and  responsible  organization  for  a secret 
and  irresponsible  one,  which  had  for  years  been  in 
existence.  To  thoughtful  and  reflecting  men  it 
seemed  very  questionable  whether,  after  all,  such 
a change  was  not  directly  to  the  advantage  of  the 
community ; even  more  to  the  advantage  of  the 
community  indeed  than  of  the  railroad  corporations. 
That  the  whole  business  of  transportation  between 
the  West  and  the  sea-board,  and  the  prices  which 
should  be  charged  for  doing  it,  had  long  been  per- 
formed under  common  tariffs  binding  on  all  the  roads 
represented  at  Saratoga,  and  made  by  their  agents 
at  stated  times,  was  a matter  of  public  notoriety.  The 


152 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


newspapers  had  for  years  contained,  among  other 
regular  news  items,  the  reports  of  the  meetings  of 
these  freight  agents  of  the  different  corporations  for 
the  purpose  of  effecting  these  common  tariffs,  just 
as  they  had  contained  reports  of  the  doings  of  the 
state  legislatures  or  of  Congress.  That  such  meet- 
ings should  have  been  held  and  such  common  tariffs 
prepared  and  published,  was  obviously  a matter  of 
mere  necessity  to  the  railroads.  It  would  have 
been  utterly  impossible  for  them  to  live  under  the 
pressure  of  a war  of  rates  knowing  no  limitation, 
— a war  in  which  freight  of  every  description  should 
be  transported  long  distances  absolutely  for  nothing. 
There  was  a time,  for  instance,  when  cattle  were 
brought  over  the  competing  roads  in  New  York 
at  a dollar  a car.  Such  competition  as  this  plainly 
opened  the  widest  and  shortest  way  to  insol- 
vency, and  it  was  to  avoid  it  that  the  conven- 
tions of  freight-agents  met.  There  was  no  secrecy 
about  their  proceedings.  The  tariffs  arranged  by 
them  were  published  in  the  papers.  They  took 
effect  at  stated  periods,  and  they  were  subject  to 
modifications  at  other  periods.  There  was  no  more 
concealment  about  them,  if  indeed  so  much,  as  there 
was  about  the  regular  local  tariffs  in  operation  on 
the  several  roads  represented.  The  only  difference 
between  the  local  and  the  through  tariffs  was  that, 
whereas  the  former  were  fixed  and  rarely  changed, 
the  latter  were  subject  to  sudden  and  violent  fluc- 
tuations. These  fluctuations  were  known  as  railroad 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


153 


wars,  and  to  these  it  was  proposed  to  put  a stop 
through  the  machinery  devised  in  the  Saratoga  con- 
ference. It  was  not  intended  as  the  result  of  that 
conference  to,  as  it  is  called,  “ pool  ” the  profits  of 
the  different  lines  which  were  parties  to  it.  On  the 
contrary,  each  line  was  to  be  left  free  to  procure  all 
the  business  that  it  could,  and  charge  the  agreed- 
upon  rates  therefor,  and  to  keep  to  itself  all  the 
profits  that  it  could  realize  from  it.  There  was 
nothing  which  looked  to  a common-purse  arrange- 
ment. The  effort  was  solely  to  do  away  with 
wars  of  rates  through  the  agency  of  arbitration. 
In  place  of  the  “ Rob  Roy  plan  ” of  leaving  each 
company  to  assert  its  own  rights  and  to  main- 
tain them  if  it  was  able,  a central  board  was  or- 
ganized, the  duty  of  which  was  to  establish  rules 
and  tariffs  which  should  be  binding  upon  the 
various  companies,  and  this  central  board  it  was 
intended  should  be  clothed  with  sufficient  powers 
to  hold  the  companies  firmly.  It  was  an  attempt 
to  substitute  arbitration  among  railroads  for  a con- 
dition of  perpetual  warfare ; consequently,  though 
the  roads  through  this  board  secured  a much 
closer  combination  than  had  ever  before  been 
effected,  yet,  from  the  very  fact  of  their  so  doing, 
they  also  concentrated  responsibility  upon  the  board 
and  consequently  upon  themselves.  The  board  of 
arbitration  was  their  representative.  It  acted  openly 
and  publicly,  before  the  whole  country.  It  estab- 
lished rates,  and  it  was  responsible  to  the  country 
7* 


154 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


and  to  public  opinion  for  the  rates  thus  established. 
Upon  it,  therefore,  the  whole  force  of  public  opinion 
could,  at  any  time,  be  brought  to  bear,  in  place  of 
being  dissipated  as  before  among  a number  of  wholly 
irresponsible  subordinate  agencies.  Apparently, 
therefore,  to  any  one  who  looked  below  the  mere 
surface  of  things, — to  any  one  who  was  not  led 
astray  by  empty  cries  against  railroad  kings,  and  by 
the  equally  empty  denunciation  of  monopolies,  the 
Saratoga  conference  had  resulted  in  no  insignificant 
public  benefit.  It  had  substituted  the  responsible 
for  the  irresponsible  ; publicity  for  secrecy ; it 
seemed,  at  last,  to  promise  to  bring  the  railroads 
together  under  one  head,  and  that  a directly  account- 
able head. 

Obviously,  the  adhesion  of  all  the  trunk  lines  was 
essential  to  the  success  of  this  experiment.  The 
position  would  not  be  greatly  altered  from  what  it 
had  been  before,  if,  while  the  three  central  through 
lines  between  the  West  and  the  sea-board  had  ef- 
fected a combination,  they  were  yet  flanked,  as  it 
were,  on  the  one  side  and  the  other,  by  lines  not 
parties  to  the  arrangement ; by  the  Grand  Trunk 
upon  the  north,  and  by  the  Baltimore  & Ohio  on  the 
south.  This  proved  to  be  the  fact.  At  the  time  of 
the  conference,  Mr.  Garrett,  the  president  of  the 
Baltimore  & Ohio,  was  absent  in  Europe.  Imme- 
diately on  his  return,  ostensibly  to  pay  him  a visit 
of  compliment  but  in  reality  to  induce  him  to  give 
in  his  adhesion  to  the  new  arrangement,  the  repre- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


155 


sentatives  of  the  other  lines  paid  a visit  to  Baltimore. 
It  soon  became  apparent  that  trouble  was  impend- 
ing. Mr.  Garrett  declined  to  surrender  what  he 
called  the  independent  policy  of  the  company  which 
he  represented.  He  professed  the  utmost  willingness 
to  agree  on  its  behalf  to  adhere  to  the  rates  estab- 
lished by  the  combined  lines,  but  he  refused  to  sub- 
ject it  to  the  jurisdiction  of  the  board  of  arbitration. 
He  sought,  in  fact,  to  avoid  all  entangling  alliances, 
and  to  keep  the  Baltimore  & Ohio  in  a -position 
of  absolute  independence,  to  do  what  it  pleased  in 
view  of  the  local  interests  which  it  had  always  been 
its  policy  to  foster.  The  representatives  of  the  three 
central  lines  returned,  therefore,  from  Baltimore  in 
no  good  humor.  Nor  were  their  apprehensions  of 
impending  trouble  unfounded.  Hardly  was  the 
board  of  arbitration  under  the  Saratoga  conference 
organized,  when  a bitter  railroad  war  arose  between 
the  lines  which  they  represented  and  their  southern 
neighbor.  The  more  active  hostilities  were  neces- 
sarily confined  to  the  Pennsylvania  road,  which  was 
brought  immediately  in  contact  with  the  Baltimore 
& Ohio.  The  war,  though  short,  was  very  severe, 
and,  for  the  time  being,  seemed  to  disorganize  the 
railroad  relations  of  half  the  country.  It  ended,  as 
wars  between  solvent  corporations  always  have  ended 
and  always  must  end,  in  an  agreement.  The  Balti- 
more & Ohio  became  one  of  the  combination  of 
roads,  upon  the  old  footing  of  tariffs  agreed  upon  in 
conferences  of  freight-agents.  It  retained  its  inde- 


156 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


pendence.  It  was  not  subject  to  the  jurisdiction, 
or  bound  by  the  action,  of  any  board  of  arbitra- 
tion, and  consequently  the  board  became  a useless 
piece  of  lumber.  Thus  the  one  thing,  practically, 
which  the  furious  struggle  had  resulted  in  was  the 
destruction  of  that  which  was  best  in  the  Saratoga 
arrangement.  The  worst  features  of  the  old  sys- 
tem of  irresponsible  combination  were  restored ; 
for  with  the  board  of  arbitration  the  two  great 
principles  of  publicity  and  direct  responsibility, 
which  that  board  necessarily  represented,  had  also 
disappeared  ; there  remained  nothing  but  a loose 
understanding,  such  as  it  was,  between  four  of  the 
five  through  routes,  which  was  binding  upon  them 
only  so  long  as  they  saw  fit  to  be  bound  by  it. 
Even  this  loose  understanding,  however,  was  not 
a general  one.  The  Grand  Trunk  of  Canada  re- 
fused to  enter  into  it  ; and  the  Grand  Trunk  of  Can- 
ada was  not  only  thus  a recusant  road,  but  it  also 
so  happened  that  it  was  bankrupt.  This,  for  the 
reasons  already  stated,  sorely  complicated  the  strug- 
gle. The  combined  and  solvent  roads  were  very 
loath  to  enter  into  a war  of  rates  with  an  insol- 
vent through  line,  aided,  as  it  necessarily  was, 
by  the  whole  system  of  bankrupt  western  connec- 
tions. Therefore  railroad  competition  in  the  win- 
ter of  1875  developed  itself  to  its  full  extent,  but 
now  with  results  which  few  had  ever  anticipated. 
It,  of  course,  led  to  discrimination,  but  for  once 
the  places  specially  discriminated  against  were 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


lS7 


the  two  great  railroad  centres  of  the  country, — 
Chicago  and  New  York.  The  Grand  Trunk  road  led 
directly  to  neither  of  these  cities.  Consequently, 
the  combined  roads  being  unwilling  to  meet  that  line 
in  a war  of  rates  it  was  left  at  liberty  to  compete  at 
points  it  did  reach  almost  without  restraint.  Its 
rates,  and  those  of  the  roads  which  connected  with 
it,  accordingly  were  marked  down  low  enough  to 
cause  business  to  be  turned  away  from  the  combined 
lines.  This  meant  that  business  was  diverted  from 
Chicago  and  from  New  York,  the  centres  which  those 
lines  especially  connected.  Meanwhile,  though  the 
Grand  Trunk  did  not  reach  either  Chicago  or  New 
York,  it  did  through  connecting  roads  reach  the  rival 
cities  of  Milwaukee  and  Boston.  Hence  it  was  that 
so  long  as  that  war  of  rates  was  suffered  to  continue, 
both  New  York  and  Chicago  looked  on,  not  without 
dismay,  while  the  stream  which  flowed  through  their 
own  channels  seemed  rapidly  to  be  drying  up,  and 
that  which  flowed  through  the  channels  of  their 
rivals  was  swollen  beyond  all  precedent. 

That  such  a condition  of  affairs  should  long  be 
endured  in  silence  was  not  to  be  expected.  Accord- 
ingly the  business  communities  of  both  cities  soon 
began  to  bestir  themselves,  and  the  press  of  each  to 
make  itself  heard.  The  course  pursued  in  the  two 
cases  was  almost  diametrically  opposite.  In  Chicago 
a committee  of  the  Board  of  Trade  was  appointed  to 
take  the  situation  under  advisement,  and  this  com- 
mittee indue  time  was  delivered  of  a report.  It  was 


iS8 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


a singular  document.  The  theory  was  advanced  in 
it  that  what  Chicago,  the  great  converging  point  of 
all  western  railroads,  yet  needed  was  one  more 
through  line  to  the  East ; but  this  time  it  needed  a 
hopelessly,  permanently,  bankrupt  line  in  the  hands 
of  a perpetual  receiver!  In  New  York  a far  more 
sensible  course  was  adopted.  The  merchants  met  to- 
gether in  conference,  and  a committee  was  appointed 
to  wait  upon  the  managers  of  the  New  York  Cen- 
tral and  to  point  out  to  them  the  damage  which  was 
being  done  to  what  must  after  all,  under  any  circum- 
stances, remain  the  natural  terminus  of  their  road. 
The  duty  of  protecting  their  own  best  customer, 
which  devolved  upon  those  managing  the  line, 
scarcely  needed  to  be  dwelt  upon.  The  meeting 
between  the  committee  and  the  officials  was  a very 
friendly  one.  No  complaint  was  made  as  to  the 
rates  then  charged  by  the  New  York  Central.  These 
were  freely  acknowledged  to  be  reasonable  and  suf- 
ficiently low.  But  the  competing  rates  of  the  other 
line  were  lower.  On  this  point  there  was  no  dispute, 
for  the  railroad  officials  freely  admitted  that  the  rates 
west  from  Boston  were  some  fifty  percent,  less  than 
the  rates  at  that  same  time  from  New  York.  It  was 
not  denied,  either,  that  the  condition  of  affairs  neces- 
sarily resulted  in  great  hardship,  and  must  involve 
the  destruction  of  many  branches  of  New  York 
business. 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  Vanderbilts  at 
once  recognized  and  acknowledged  the  public  duty 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


159 


which  devolved  upon  them.  They  stated  to  the 
committee  the  circumstances  under  which  they  were 
placed,  and  promised  that,  at  whatever  cost,  the  in- 
terests of  the  city  of  New  York  should  be  protected. 

A fierce  railroad  war  now  seemed  impending.  A 
bold  announcement  was  immediately  put  forth  that 
the  New  York  Central  was  prepared  to  enter  into 
the  field  of  competition,  even  with  its  bankrupt  rival, 
and  that  rates  would  be  marked  down  to  any  point 
necessary  for  the  protection  of  New  York  inter- 
ests, however  low  that  point  might  prove  to  be. 
Accordingly  they  were  at  once  reduced  some  sixty 
per  cent.  It  was  obvious  that  events  must  take  one 
of  two  courses.  Either  there  must  be  a destructive 
war,  in  which  the  New  York  Central,  as  the  solvent 
line,  would  suffer  the  most ; or  it  must  be  made 
worth  the  while  of  those  managing  the  Grand  Trunk 
to  enter  the  combination  and  retire  from  the  strug- 
gle. Events  moved  rapidly.  Scarcely  were  the 
newspapers  filled  with  the  rumors  of  war  and  with 
the  loud  notes  of  preparation  for  it,  when  they  also 
announced  that  a conference  of  the  competing  par- 
ties was  about  to  be  held  in  the  city  of  New  York. 
It  was  held  there.  The  usual  discussion  took  place 
in  public,  which  promised,  apparently,  to  produce 
small  results.  The  parties  seemed  to  stand  too  far 
apart  from  each  other.  These  things,  however,  are 
not  generally  arranged  in  public,  or  in  the  presence 
of  newspaper  reporters.  While  the  representatives 
of  connecting  roads,  east  and  west,  were  discussing 


i6o 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


and  hopelessly  differing,  those  representing  the  three 
corporations  most  immediately  concerned  withdrew 
to  the  parlor  of  a neighboring  hotel.  In  an  hour  or 
two  they  separated,  and  the  evening  papers  of  New 
York  for  that  day  announced  that,  all  differences 
between  the  competing  lines  having  been  adjusted, 
rates  would  at  once  be  restored  to  a paying  basis. 

This  combination  was  effected  in  December  1875, 
and  was  based  upon  a division  of  business ; the 
longer  and  more  indirect  route  being  in  fact  allowed 
a share  of  the  traffic,  in  order  to  buy  it  off.  Matters 
were,  however,  arranged  in  that  quarter  only  to 
have  trouble  break  out  elsewhere  in  an  even  more 
aggravated  form.  The  combination  of  December, 
1875,  was,  in  fact,  of  even  shorter  duration  than  any 
of  its  numerous  predecessors,  for  it  lasted  scarcely 
one  month.  Early  in  February  it  was  broken,  in 
consequence  of  a misunderstanding  between  the 
Erie  and  New  York  Central,  and  a new  war  of  rates 
was  begun  on  all  east-bound  through  freights,  under 
the  influence  of  which  they  fell  rapidly.  This  con- 
tinued until  March,  when  another  meeting  of  the 
representatives  of  through  lines  was  held,  and 
renewed  efforts  were  made  to  effect  an  understand- 
ing. These,  however,  resulted  in  nothing,  except  a 
brief  postponement  of  an  inevitable  struggle.  They 
wholly  failed  to  touch  the  real  root  of  the  difficulty. 
This  no  longer  lay  in  the  old  and  chronic  inability 
of  the  railroad  officials  to  put  any  trust  in  each 
other’s  good  faith,  and  rigidly  to  enforce  upon  their 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


161 


subordinates  a scrupulous  regard  to  agreements. 
The  struggle  had  assumed  a new  and,  to  the  railroad 
interests,  far  more  dangerous  form,  that  of  a bitter 
rivalry  between  the  great  commercial  cities  of  the 
seaboard.  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia  were  not  only 
asserting  an  ability  to  compete  with  New  York  as 
exporting  points  for  western  produce,  but,  owing  to 
the  thorough  organization  and  perfect  development 
of  their  great  railroad  lines  and  terminal  facilities, 
they  were  demonstrating  their  power  to  do  it.  Ever 
since  the  opening  of  the  Erie  Canal  in  1825,  a monop- 
oly of  the  business  of  exporting  produce  had  been 
practically  conceded  to  New  York.  Only  within  the 
last  ten  years  has  it  been  supposed  that  railroads 
could  compete  for  the  carriage  of  cheap  and  bulky  ar- 
ticles with  lake  or  even  slack-water  navigation.  Rates, 
however,  have  continued  to  fall,  until  it  has  at  last 
been  demonstrated  that  under  certain  favorable  con- 
ditions it  is  more  advantageous  at  all  seasons  to  for- 
ward nearly  every  description  of  merchandise  by  rail 
than  at  least  by  canal.  Accordingly,  the  amount  of 
agricultural  products  carried  by  rail  from  west  to  east, 
as  compared  with  that  carried  by  water,  had  gradually 
increased  until,  at  the  close  of  the  year  1 876  it  amount- 
ed to  more  than  half  of  the  whole  quantity  moved. 
In  1873,  the  proportion  was  29.8  per  cent  moved  by 
rail,  to  70.2  per  cent  by  water;  in  1874,  it  was  33 
per  cent  by  rail,  to  67  per  cent  by  water;  in  1875, 
it  was  41  per  cent  by  rail  to  59  per  cent  by  water  ; 
and  at  last,  in  1876,  it  was  52.6  per  cent  by  rail  to  47.4 


1 62  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 

by  water.  This  transfer,  also,  had  taken  place  not- 
withstanding the  fact  that  during  the  years  named 
the  pressure  of  competition  had  forced  down  rates 
on  wheat  carried  by  lake  and  canal  from  Chicago  to 
New  York  by  more  than  one-half,- -from  19.2  cents 
per  bushel  to  9.5.  Lower  than  this  they  could  not 
go  at  the  canal  tolls  then  in  force,  and  at  this  rate  the 
railroads  were  taking  the  traffic.  U nder  these  circum- 
stances, it  was  inevitable  that  a wholly  new  phase  of 
competition  must  be  developed.  Canal  navigation 
was  possible  to  New  York  alone  ; but  when  the  traffic 
passed  from  the  canal  to  the  railroads,  other  cities 
possessed  equal  if  not  superior  advantages.  Accord- 
ingly, the  struggle  was  no  longer  between  the  rail- 
roads leading  to  New  York  and  the  Erie  Canal,  but 
between  railroads  leading  to  different  seaboard 
points.  The  monopoly  of  New  York  was  threatened. 
Neither  was  the  result  of  the  impending  struggle  by 
any  means  so  certain  as  long  habit  might  induce 
many  people  to  suppose.  The  prescriptive  enjoyment 
of  an  undisputed  monopoly  has  produced  in  the  case 
of  New  York  the  usual  results,  and  both  railroads 
and  business  community  of  that  place,  confidently 
relying  on  long  possession  and  natural  advantages, 
have  allowed  abuses  to  creep  in,  or  failed  to  supply 
improved  facilities,  until  the  handling  of  produce  for 
export  there  has  become  most  unnecessarily  expen- 
sive. Meanwhile,  the  cities  of  Philadelphia  and 
Baltimore,  having  great  natural  disadvantages  to 
overcome,  were  naturally  forced  to  husband  every 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 1 63 

resource  and  make  the  most  of  every  circumstance 
in  their  favor.  All  this  they  did  with  a degree  of 
sagacity,  foresight  and  success  well  deserving  of 
careful  study. 

At  bottom  it  was  this  changed  relative  position 
of  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia  towards  New  York 
which,  during  the  early  months  of  1876,  was  grad- 
ually driving  the  great  lines  into  a fiercer  and  more 
destructive  war  of  rates  than  had  ever  been  known 
before.  New  York,  and  consequently  the  main  rail- 
road line  leading  to  it,  began  for  the  first  time  to 
realize  that  its  easy  supremacy  no  longer  existed, 
and  that  in  the  struggle  of  competition  it  had  no 
advantages  to  waste.  Theretofore  it  had  always 
been  the  practice  on  shipments  from  western  points 
to  the  seaboard  to  take  into  consideration  the  dis- 
tances of  the  several  cities  from  the  point  of  starting. 
A concession  had  always  been  allowed  in  favor  of 
the  southern  points  of  shipment,  under  which  origi- 
nally the  rate  to  Boston  had  been  five  cents  per  hun- 
dred more  than  to  New  York,  that  to  New  York 
five  cents  more  than  to  Philadelphia,  and  that  to 
Philadelphia  five  cents  more  than  to  Baltimore. 
These  differences  had  subsequently  been  modified 
until,  for  some  time  previous  to  March,  1875,  on  all 
export  merchandise  rates  to  Boston  and  New  York 
were  equal,  while  those  to  Philadelphia  and  Balti- 
more. though  equal  to  each  other,  were  five  cents  less 
than  the  New  York-Boston  rate.  As  the  sense  of 
pressure  from  the  competition  of  the  more  southern 


164 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


thoroughfares  increased,  however,  the  New  York  in- 
terests began  to  realize  that  this  arbitrary  rate 
placed  them  under  a too  heavy  disadvantage.  Ac- 
cordingly, a new  adjustment  of  rates  was  effected  on 
a different  principle.  A differential  tariff  was  agreed 
upon,  based  on  distance,  under  which,  taking  Chi- 
cago as  a fixed  point,  and  the  rate  from  that  city 
to  New  York  as  the  standard,  a reduction  from  it  of 
10  per  cent  was  allowed  in  favor  of  Philadelphia,  and 
one  of  12.5  per  cent,  in  favor  of  Baltimore.  This 
adjustment  did  not  affect  the  Boston  rate,  which 
remained  as  before. 

The  results  of  the  new  system  soon  began  to 
show  themselves  and  it  was  apparent  that  the  New 
Y ork  Central  had  been  over-reached.  The  receipts 
of  western  produce  increased  immensely  at  Philadel- 
phia and  at  Baltimore,  indicating  an  alarming  diver- 
sion of  the  export  trade  from  New  York;  for  the 
difference  in  rates  between  the  ports  was  not  infre- 
quently almost  equal  to  the  entire  ocean  freight  to 
Europe.  When  those  controlling  the  New  York 
Central  became  fully  awake  to  this  fact,  and  when 
they  also  realized  the  pressure  in  the  way  of  equal 
competition  under  any  circumstances  which  Balti- 
more and  Philadelphia,  with  all  their  perfect  facili- 
ties for  handling  through  business,  could  now  bring 
to  bear  upon  them,  it  naturally  occurred  to  them 
that  the  time  had  come  for  refusing  longer  to  con- 
cede a differential  rate  in  favor  of  those  who  seemed 
in  no  respect  less  advantageously  placed  than  them- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 1 65 

selves.  In  order,  however,  to  assume  a consistent 
position  on  this  subject,  it  became  necessary  for  the 
Central  road  to  extend  the  principle  beyond  New 
York,  and  to  claim  a uniform  rate  from  the  interior 
to  all  the  seaboard  points.  This  principle  it  was 
perfectly  obvious  that  the  southern  or  shorter  routes 
could  not  concede,  as  with  their  longer  ocean  route 
it  was  tantamount  to  the  surrender  of  that  export 
trade  a share  in  which  they  had  made  such  prodi- 
gious efforts  to  secure.  A full  trial  of  strength  thus 
became  inevitable. 

The  struggle  did  not,  however,  break  out  in  the 
first  place  between  those  who  subsequently  became 
the  principal  parties  to  it.  On  the  contrary,  all 
through  the  month  of  March  and  the  early  part  of 
April,  1876,  conferences  were  held  and  strenuous 
efforts  made  to  hold  the  through  lines  to  an  under- 
standing among  themselves.  At  the  last  of  these, 
on  the  4th  of  April,  the  New  York  Central  repre- 
sented that  it  was  under  the  necessity  of  meeting 
the  competition  of  the  Grand  Trunk  in  New  Eng- 
land, and  to  this  those  representing  the  other  lines 
assented  upon  the  understanding  that  the  struggle 
was  to  be  a local  one,  and  was  not  to  extend  to  New 
York,  nor  to  divert  business  from  that  city.  In  the 
course,  however,  of  a very  few  days,  it  became  ap- 
parent that  the  contest  could  not  be  thus  restricted, 
and  as  the  result  of  a further  conference  on  the  18th 
of  April,  at  which  a number  of  complaints  were  pre- 
sented, the  New  York  Central  finally  gave  notice  of 


1 66  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 

the  complete  abandonment  of  all  agreements,  and 
almost  immediately  a general  war  of  rates  began. 
Between  the  3d  of  May  and  the  14th  of  June,  the 
fare  between  Boston  and  Chicago  over  the  New 
York  Central  fell  from  $25.85  to  $14,  and  that  over 
the  Grand  Trunk  from  $23.85  to  $12.50;  while,  as 
respects  freights,  the  rates  between  Boston  and  Chi- 
cago on  articles  of  the  first  class  fell  from  75  cents 
per  hundred  pounds  to  20  cents,  and  that  on  agri- 
cultural products  from  Chicago  to  New  York  fell 
from  50  cents  per  hundred  to  18  cents.  These,  also, 
were  the  published  rates,  while  innumerable  special 
contracts  on  terms  far  more  favorable  to  shippers 
were  made  wherever  business  was  competed  for.  Ship- 
pers whose  patronage  was  really  worth  having  were, 
in  fact,  in  a position  to  dictate  their  own  terms  ; and 
they  did  it.  For  six  months  the  spectacle  was  wit- 
nessed of  railroads  hauling  merchandise  1,013  miles 
east  for  $3.60  per  ton,  and  the  same  distance  west 
for  $2.80  per  ton, — in  the  one  case  at  the  rate  of  3.5 
mills  per  ton  per  mile,  and  in  the  other  at  the  rate 
of  2.8  mills  ; a result  which  made  sober  and  reason- 
able the  most  extravagant  predictions  which  the  ad- 
vocates of  cheap  transportation  had  ever  ventured 
to  utter. 

No  sooner  was  the  struggle  fairly  developed  than 
the  true  issue  was  boldly  avowed  by  the  New  York 
Central, — it  being  to  restore  the  commercial  supre- 
macy of  New  York,  imperilled  by  the  rapid  develop- 
ment of  southern  rivals.  The  principles  of  trans- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


1 67 


portation  involved  were  sufficiently  simple.  It  was 
conceded  on  all  sides  that  in  the  case  of  rival  or  com- 
peting lines  between  any  two  given  points,  as  Chi- 
cago and  New  York,  the  shorter  or  more  direct  route 
had  the  right,  as  it  was  termed,  to  establish  the  rate  ; 
that  is,  it  fixed  a rate,  and  the  longer  routes  were 
obliged  to  meet  it,  regardless  of  their  own  greater 
mileage ; the  principle  of  charging  so  much  per  ton  per 
mile  being,  for  obvious  reasons,  inapplicable.  Where, 
however,  lines  terminated  at  different  though  com- 
peting centres,  it  was  maintained  that  the  principle  of 
mileage  should  apply, — that  there  was  no  reason,  for 
instance,  why  Baltimore  should  not  enjoy,  as  com- 
pared with  Portland  or  Boston,  the  full  advantage  of 
its  geographical  situation.  While  the  managers  of  the 
Baltimore  & Ohio  and  the  Pennsylvania  roads  insisted, 
therefore,  on  the  differential  allowance,  those  of  the 
New  York  Central  met  them  by  fixing  rates  at  so  low 
a point  that  the  differential  allowance,  when  insisted 
upon,  could  not  amount  to  enough  to  influence  the 
course  of  traffic.  Before  the  substitution  of  steel 
rails  for  iron,  the  roads  could  not  possibly  have  en- 
dured the  test  of  carrying  on  a season’s  business  at 
the  rates  which  ensued.  Some  idea  may  be  realized 
of  the  wonderful  economy  which  has  been  attained 
in  the  movement  of  merchandise,  from  the  fact  that 
as  a regular  thing  a ton  in  weight  was  moved  four 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  Buffalo  to  New  York 
for  $1.50,  whereas  in  the  early  part  of  the  century  it 
would  have  cost  $100. 


1 68  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 

Having  practically  lasted  for  over  eight  months 
of  the  centennial  year,  thus  enabling  thousands  of 
visitors  to  attend  the  Philadelphia  Exposition  at 
rates  of  fare  never  before  dreamed  of  as  possible,  the 
struggle  came  to  a close  in  December.  In  its  results 
it  was  not  decisive,  for  nothing  but  a general  amal- 
gamation of  all  the  trunk  lines  into  one  huge  consol- 
idated company  could  have  been  decisive  ; and  for 
that  neither  the  corporations  themselves  nor  the 
public  mind  were  yet  ripe.  Though  not  decisive, 
however,  the  results  were  most  significant.  Without 
having  secured,  or  probably  ever  having  expected  to 
secure,  everything  which  it  had  claimed,  the  New 
York  Central  interest  emerged  from  the  conflict  dis- 
tinctly in  the  ascendant.  It  had  stood  the  strain 
better  than  any  of  its  rivals  ; its  dividends  were  not 
diminished,  and  its  balance  sheet  exhibited  fewer 
items  of  mystery.  Meanwhile  the  Baltimore  & 
Ohio  had  abandoned  all  pretensions  to  independence, 
and  was  quite  ready  to  enter  into  alliances,  no  mat- 
ter how  entangling ; and  the  Pennsylvania  road, 
having  lost  for  the  time  being  its  ability  to  pay 
dividends,  had  lost  with  it  all  disposition  to  com- 
pete. The  arrangement  first  arrived  at  was  a very 
complicated  one,  in  which  an  elaborate  system  of 
rebates  to  equalize  ocean  freights  was  a prominent 
feature,  and  which  was  apparently  designed  to 
secure  a sort  of  rough  equality  among  the  several 
exporting  cities  ; while,  so  far  as  the  local  traffic  was 
concerned,  a slight  advantage  was  conceded  to  New 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


169 


York  in  the  northern  portions  of  the  great  district 
in  which  through  their  connections  all  the  trunk  lines 
compete,  and  a somewhat  larger  advantage  was  given 
to  Baltimore  in  the  southern  portions  of  that  dis- 
trict. The  fundamental  idea  of  this  arrangement 
was,  however,  reasonable  and  just,  and  has  not  since 
been  abandoned.  So  far  as  the  much  sought  for  ex- 
port trade  was  concerned,  the  entire  cost  of  carriage 
from  the  gathering  point  in  the  West  to  the  foreign 
market  was  taken  into  account,  and  the  railroad  rates 
to  the  several  seaboard  cities  were  so  fixed  as  to  give 
a decided  superiority  to  no  one  of  them.  So  far  as 
was  possible,  they  were  placed  upon  a footing  of 
equality,  and  left  to  improve  their  advantages  or  to 
overcome  their  disadvantages  as  best  they  could. 

It  soon,  however,  became  apparent  that  some- 
thing more  than  a vague  understanding  was  neces- 
sary. Even  Mr.  Garrett  had  been  forced  to  recognize 
the  fact  that  the  time  was  past  in  which  railroads 
could  insist  upon  their  right  to  take  all  they  could 
get,  and  to  keep  all  they  took.  To  deal  with  the 
great  problem  of  competitive  business  a system,  in- 
deed, was  wanted,  but,  even  more  than  a system,  a 
man. 

Two  years  had  now  elapsed  since  the  failure 
of  the  experiment  devised  at  Saratoga,  and  little 
confidence  was  felt  in  any  recourse  to  a board  of 
extemporaneously  devised  commissioners  or  arbi- 
trators who,  however  personally  respectable  they 
might  be,  would  certainly  be  sustained  by  no  exter- 


170  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 

nal  power,  and  would  probably  enjoy  no  particular 
degree  of  moral  confidence.  Meanwhile,  as  is  always 
the  case  where  a real  want  exists,  the  Saratoga  fail- 
ure had  been  followed  by  new  experiments  in  the 
same  direction  elsewhere.  To  one  of  these  experi- 
ments it  is  now  necessary  to  recur.  Uncontrollable 
and  ruinous  railroad  competition  was  not  at  all  con- 
fined to  any  single  section  of  the  United  States,  or  to 
any  particular  system  of  railroads.  It  had  been  felt  at 
the  South  even  more  than  at  the  North  and  West, 
and  the  corporations  there  were  in  no  condition  to 
bear  through  any  long  period  a heavy  strain  on  their 
resources.  It  was  in  the  South,  accordingly,  that 
the  next  attempt  was  made  to  reduce  the  railroad 
chaos  to  some  degree  of  order.  In  principle  this  ex- 
periment was  very  like  that  which  resulted  from  the 
Saratoga  conference,  but  its  working  details  had 
been  much  more  carefully  thought  out.  It  assumed 
a definite  shape  under  the  name  of  the  Southern 
Railway  and  Steamship  Association. 

The  representatives  of  some  thirty  independent 
railroad  and  steamship  companies  had  met  at  Atlan- 
ta, Georgia,  in  September,  1875,  and  regularly  asso- 
ciated themselves.  A formal  constitution,  setting 
forth  both  the  objects  the  association  was  designed  to 
secure  and  the  means  through  which  it  was  proposed 
to  secure  them,  was  then  agreed  upon  and  signed. 
Under  this  constitution  the  associated  companies 
proposed  to  transact  that  portion,  and  that  portion 
only,  of  their  business  in  which  they  might  be  jointly 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  I / 1 

concerned,  and  to  the  proper  conduct  of  which  con- 
stant negotiations  and  even  cooperation  were  neces- 
sary. A central  bureau  was  provided  for,  which  was 
in  fact  a species  of  clearing-house.  A single  official, 
with  the  style  of  general  commissioner,  was  to  preside 
over  this  bureau.  The  necessity  of  transacting  busi- 
ness through  the  clumsy  agency  of  conventions  was 
thus  obviated,  and,  as  all  matters  in  dispute  had  to 
pass  through  the  hands  of  an  experienced  and  impar- 
tial officer,  that  personal  contact  between  incompetent 
and  irritated  subordinates  which  is  the  cause  of  at 
least  one-half  of  the  railroad  wars  became  wholly  un- 
necessary. The  general  commissioner  was  intended 
to  be  the  common  executive  officer  of  the  associa- 
tion. As  all  negotiations  were  to  be  carried  on 
through  him,  every  difficulty  as  it  arose  necessarily 
came  under  his  eye,  enabling  him  to  prevent  many 
complications  by  judiciously  acting  as  adviser  and 
mediator.  If,  however,  harmonious  cooperation 
could  not  be  preserved  in  this  way,  it  then  became 
the  duty  of  the  general  commissioner,  as  umpire,  to 
judicially  decide  questions  at  issue  between  the  mem- 
bers of  the  association,  though  his  decisions  were  at 
all  times  subject  to  appeal  to  a board  of  mutually 
appointed  arbitrators.  The  next  duty  of  the  general 
commissioner  was  to  see  that  all  agreements  entered 
into,  and  all  his  own  decisions  or  those  of  the  boards 
of  arbitration,  were  fully  and  honestly  carried  out. 
In  this  respect,  of  course,  he,  like  the  Saratoga  com- 
missioners, could  bring  no  legal  power  to  bear  on  a 


172 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


recusant.  Yet,  though  the  force  he  could  exercise 
was  in  main  a moral  one  only,  he  wras  not  confined 
to  that.  He  could,  in  case  of  need,  declare  a partial 
or  even  a general  war  of  rates,  and  the  combined 
force  of  the  association  being  thus  wielded  by  one 
hand,  it  was  in  a position  to  practically  enforce  a 
policy,  and,  what  was  more,  in  doing  so  to  expend 
only  that  amount  of  strength  necessary  to  accomplish 
the  end  in  view.  Neither  could  the  withdrawal 
from  it  of  any  one  member,  nor  indeed  of  a number 
of  them,  dissolve  the  association.  For,  in  spite  of 
such  withdrawal,  the  clearing-house  and  the  agency 
for  the  transaction  of  joint  business  still  remained  in 
the  service  of  those  which  were  left.  As  other  com- 
panies could  also  at  any  time  join  the  association,  the 
system  admitted  of  indefinite  expansion,  and,  indeed, 
could  with  mere  changes  in  detail  be  made  to  in- 
clude the  entire  railroad  system  of  the  continent, 
much  as  the  similar  German  association  includes  all 
the  railroads  of  Central  Europe. 

Next  to  the  outside  pressure  which  causes  those 
managing  the  individual  lines  to  yield  something  of 
their  independence  for  the  sake  of  order,  the  success 
of  any  such  combination  as  this  depends  almost  ex- 
clusively upon  the  ability,  temper,  and  skill  of  the 
general  commissioner,  and  upon  the  degree  with  which 
he  is  able  to  inspire  respect  and  confidence  in  the 
minds  of  the  associates.  In  this  particular  the  south- 
ern association  was  fortunate.  Colonel  Albert  Fink, 
for  a number  of  years  connected  with  the  Louisville 


THL  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


173 


& Nashville  Railroad  Company  as  its  Vice  President 
and  General  Manager,  in  which  position  he  had  dis- 
played qualities  especially  fitting  him  for  such  a 
post  as  he  was  now  chosen  to  fill,  became  its  general 
commissioner.  He,  if  any  man,  could  be  expected 
to  carry  the  plan  of  the  association  into  successful 
working,  for  it  was  he  who  had  devised  and  matured 
it.  The  experiment  was  thus  tried  under  the  most 
favorable  auspices,  and  its  success,  though  not  com- 
plete, had  in  i877been  sufficiently  marked  to  attract 
throughout  the  country  the  attention  of  more  observ- 
ant men  interested  in  questions  of  railroad  develop- 
ment. 

Determined  to  go  a step  further  towards  an  effec- 
tive combination  than  they  had  ever  gone  before, 
those  representing  the  northern  trunk  lines  now 
summoned  Colonel  Fink  to  their  assistance,  and  ap- 
pointed him  as  commissioner  to  act  under  an  execu- 
tive committee  of  their  number  in  the  adjustment  of 
all  questions  which  might  arise  among  them.  The 
object  of  the  new  combination  was  at  first  simple  and 
comparatively  feasible.  All  the  trunk  lines  whether 
they  terminated  there  or  not,  had  offices  in  New 
York,  and  were  in  steady  competition  for  the  mer- 
chandise shipments  to  the  West  from  that  place. 
Consequently  not  only  was  the  value  of  the  business 
destroyed  to  the  railroads,  but  a steady  discrimina- 
tion existed  in  favor  of  New  York  as  against  other 
and  especially  more  interior  points.  The  combina- 
tion of  which  Colonel  Fink  was  the  executive  officer 


1/4 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


was  intended,  therefore,  to  regulate  rates  on  all  ship- 
ments by  rail  from  the  city  and  suburbs  of  New  York 
to  the  West.  The  business  was  divided  among  the 
four  trunk  lines,  on  the  basis  of  an  apportionment  of 
tonnage  and  not  an  apportionment  of  earnings.  Daily 
returns  of  all  shipments  from  New  York  to  the  West 
were  made  to  the  commissioner,  and  thirty-three  per 
cent  of  this  business  was  allotted  each  to  the  New 
York  Central  and  the  Erie,  twenty-five  per  cent  to 
the  Pennsylvania,  and  nine  per  cent  to  the  Balti- 
more & Ohio.  Any  road  doing  more  than  its  al- 
lotted share  of  business  had,  under  the  commission- 
er’s instructions,  to  turn  the  excess  over  to  the  road 
doing  less  than  its  allotted  share,  and  to  pay  full 
rates  for  it. 

The  operations  of  this  organization  were  unneces- 
sarily complex  and  cumbersome,  owing  to  the  fact 
that  the  roads  concerned  in  it  were  unwilling  to  sur- 
render their  identity  so  far  as  to  issue  only  common 
bills  of  lading  from  common  offices.  They  insisted 
on  issuing  their  own  bills  specifying  the  line  by  which 
shipment  was  made,  and  thereby  incurring  legal  obli- 
gations. If,  then,  any  company  was  found  to  have 
received  and  receipted  for  shipments  in  excess  of  its 
proportion,  that  excess  had  to  be  carted  off  to  some 
other  line,  and  reached  its  destination  in  a way  dif- 
ferent from  that  designated  in  the  bill  of  lading.  This 
method  of  dividing  the  business  was,  therefore,  not 
only  cumbersome,  but  it  involved  very  serious  legal 
questions  which  at  once  suggest  themselves.  It  was 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 1 75 

due  to  the  old  jealousy.  Each  company,  but  the 
New  York  Central  especially,  wished  to  retain  its  own 
business  and  its  organization  for  getting  it.  They 
were  not  prepared,  so  to  speak,  to  burn  their  bridges, 
even  though  by  so  doing  a great  economy  would 
have  been  effected,  by  doing  away  with  an  army  of 
agents,  and  all  questions  of  legal  responsibility 
avoided. 

Nevertheless  in  the  hands  of  Colonel  Fink,  clum- 
sy as  its  mode  of  operation  was,  the  combination 
held  together  and  a division  of  the  business  was 
effected.  Its  operation  was  peculiar,  in  that  it  was 
limited  to  the  city  of  New  York  and  its  immediate 
vicinity.  At  other  central  points,  such  as  Boston, 
Philadelphia  and  Baltimore,  the  local  business  was 
left  to  take  whatever  course  it  chose,  the  several 
lines  merely  agreeing  to  sustain  rates.  Should,  how- 
ever, the  rates  not  be  sustained  at  these  local  points, 
this  fact  did  not  necessarily  involve  a disruption  of 
the  New  York  combination.  The  west-bound  busi- 
ness would  still  be  distributed  among  the  lines  in 
the  method  already  described,  though  the  rates 
charged  would,  in  certain  events,  have  to  be  reduced 
to  prevent  a diversion  of  business  from  New  York  to 
the  point  of  local  competition,  wherever  that  might 
be.  This  contingency,  in  fact,  speedily  arose  through 
the  action  of  the  Grand  Trunk  line  which,  not  reach- 
ing New  York,  proceeded  to  compete  at  Boston.  A 
diversion  of  business  was  accordingly  effected  to  such 
a degree  that  New  York  merchandise  during  the  lat- 


176 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


ter  part  of  1877  began  to  move  to  the  West  by  way 
of  Boston.  This  naturally  occasioned  loud  complaint 
in  the  former  city,  and  threatened  through  the  mere 
force  of  public  sentiment  to  either  destroy  the  com- 
bination or  to  force  it  into  a general  war  of  rates 
which  would  have  affected  equally  all  the  seaboard 
cities.  The  danger,  however,  was  for  the  time  being 
removed,  and  the  acquiescence  of  the  Grand  Trunk 
secured  in  the  usual  way. 

Encouraged  by  the  success  with  which,  under  the 
lead  of  their  new  commissioner,  they  had  effected  a 
division  of  the  business  from  the  sea-board  to  the  in- 
terior, the  representatives  of  the  trunk  lines  now 
turned  their  attention  to  the  current  which  flowed  in 
the  other  direction, — from  the  West  to  the  East. 
Experience  had  shown  that  the  problem  of  control- 
ling the  west-bound  shipments  was  one  sufficiently 
difficult  to  solve ; it  was,  however,  simplicity  itself 
compared  with  that  which  presented  itself  in  connec- 
tion with  east-bound  shipments.  These,  in  the  first 
place,  as  is  well  known,  constitute  the  vast  bulk  of  the 
entire  movement.  Consisting  chiefly  of  agricultural 
products,  they  require  the  use  of  an  immense  mass 
of  rolling  stock  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year,  and  of 
comparatively  little  at  other  seasons.  The  move- 
ment then  goes  on  from  an  immense  number  of 
points,  and  through  a great  many  channels,  some 
natural  and  others  artificial,  but  all  competing. 
The  consequence  is  that  every  conceivable  agent  of 
competition  is  brought  into  play.  The  utmost  lati- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


1 77 


tude  for  the  uncontrolled  action  of  these  competing 
forces  is  further  secured  through  the  fundamental 
principle  of  the  whole  pro-rating  railroad  system,  that 
the  agent  of  the  connecting  line  at  the  shipping 
terminus  makes  the  rate,  which  the  intermediate 
lines  and  the  line  at  the  point  of  delivery  accept.  In 
other  words,  the  rates  on  east-bound  freight  at  the 
western  points  of  shipment  were  made  by  the  well- 
nigh  innumerable  agents  of  multifarious  and  often  irre- 
sponsible companies ; and  all  that  the  intermediate  and 
eastern  companies  had  to  do  with  the  matter  was  to 
haul  and  deliver  the  goods,  receiving  their  proportion 
of  the  freight-money  for  so  doing,  according  to  the 
distance  hauled.  Under  these  conditions,  if  any,  an 
uncontrollable  competition  was  naturally  to  be  ex- 
pected. No  combination  to  control  the  rates  at 
which  the  business  should  be  done  seemed  practica- 
ble. Nevertheless  the  attempt  was  made  on  the  ba- 
sis of  Colonel  Fink's  New  York  combination.  In 
February  and  March,  1878,  a succession  of  meetings 
were  held,  which  were  attended  by  the  representatives 
of  no  less  than  forty  different  corporations  operating 
some  25,000  miles  of  road,  or  about  one-third  of  the 
whole  system  of  the  United  States.  After  some  pre- 
liminary difficulties  had  been  disposed  of  a plan  was 
adopted.  Seven  points  of  general  railroad  converg- 
ence at  the  West  were  selected.  The  representatives 
of  the  roads  running  east  from  these  points  met  and 
agreed  upon  a division  of  the  tonnage  through  and 
from  such  points,  which  was  to  hold  good  for  a period 
8* 


i;8 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


of  three  months,  to  try  the  experiment.  The  rate 
from  Chicago  to  New  York  was  then  fixed  upon  as 
the  basis  upon  which  rates  from  all  other  points  were 
to  be  computed.  For  the  lest  the  machinery  was 
precisely  the  same  as  that  already  described  in  the 
case  of  the  New  York  combination.  Daily  returns 
were  made  from  each  of  the  pooling  centres  to  a chief 
commissioner,  whose  office  was  at  Chicago,  and  a 
corresponding  division  of  tonnage  was  effected 
through  him.  All  questions  which  arose  were  re- 
ferred to  him  for  adjustment,  and  consequently  the 
rate  established  for  the  time  being  at  Chicago  regu- 
lated the  rates  charged  all  through  the  great  interior 
field  of  railroad  competition.  The  difficulty  with 
this  arrangement,  from  an  interior  point  of  view, 
was,  of  course,  its  lack  of  any  cohesive  force.  It 
depended  on  the  good  will  and  cooperation  of  too 
many  persons.  Nevertheless,  an  executory  force, 
and  a powerful  one  also,  was  not  wanting.  It  was 
furnished  by  the  trunk  lines.  Their  position  enabled 
them,  if  they  saw  fit,  to  give  a very  effective  support 
to  any  order  of  the  western  commissioner.  This  arose 
from  the  fact  that  they  are  the  stems  to  which  the 
numerous  western  connections  are  branches,  and  ev- 
erything which  the  latter  collect  has  to  be  delivered 
over  to  some  one  of  the  five  trunk  lines  to  reach  a 
seaboard  destination.  If,  therefore,  acting  in  support 
of  the  western  combination,  the  trunk  line  combina- 
tion had  absolutely  refused  to  connect  with  any  road 
which  failed  to  maintain  rates,  except  on  arbitrary 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


1/9 


terms,  the  result  must  have  been  that  such  road, 
shut  up  in  its  own  territory,  would,  soon  or  late,  have 
been  forced  to  submit. 

The  three  months  during  which  it  had  been  agreed 
that  this  plan  of  apportionment  should  be  tried  ex- 
pired in  June,  1878.  At  a meeting  of  those  repre- 
senting the  roads  interested  in  it,  held  in  New  York, 
it  was  then  pronounced  a failure,  and  abandoned  ; 
the  commissioner  himself  admitting  that  he  had  been 
powerless  either  to  enforce  rates  or  to  punish  those 
who  had  defiantly  violated  the  compact.  Whether 
the  cause  of  failure  was  due  to  the  absence  of  the 
qualities  essential  to  success  in  the  commissioner  him- 
self, did  not  appear;  but  it.  was  apparent  that  the 
trunk  line  combination  had  not  seen  fit  to  exert  its 
power  to  further  continue  the  experiment  at  that 
time.  It  allowed  the  western  connections  to  begin 
another  war  among  themselves,  simply  fixing  its  own 
share  of  the  joint  rate,  which  was  sufficiently  large  to 
leave  the  combatants  a somewhat  beggarly  margin  to 
fight  over.  Nevertheless,  the  idea  of  a trunk-line 
Protectorate  had  been  developed,  and  its  feasibility 
proved.  The  direction  of  the  next  attempt  is  thus 
very  clearly  indicated. 

The  combinations  which  have  been  described  are 
representative.  Capital  is  trying  to  protect  itself ; 
and  will  succeed  in  doing  it.  The  stress  of  com- 
petition has  been  too  great,  and  in  its  own  way  is  re- 
sulting in  combination.  It  is  not  necessary  to  mul- 
tiply examples.  If  it  were  they  could  be  found  in 


i8o 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


any  direction,  for  during  the  last  two  years  there  is 
almost  no  section  of  the  country  or  branch  of  trade 
which  has  not  been  “ pooled/'  The  “ Omaha  pool/' 
the  “ Colorado  pool/'  the  “ Southwestern  Rate  As- 
sociation," the  “ Southern  Railway  and  Steamship 
Association,"  are  examples  of  these  combinations 
working  over  sections  of  territory  ; — the  “ Coal  Com- 
bination," the  “ Chicago  Cattle  pool,"  the  “ Oil  pool," 
are  examples  of  their  working  over  branches  of  busi- 
ness. They  are  based  upon  the  same  fundamental 
principles  ; whether  a division  of  business,  or  a divis- 
ion of  the  money  receipts  from  business.  They  are 
directed  to  the  same  end,  the  control  of  competition. 
They  differ  only  in  details.  The  effect  of  these  com- 
binations and  their  evident  tendency  to  development 
remain  to  be  considered. 

It  is,  of  course,  unnecessary  to  say  that  all  combi- 
nations of  the  character  of  those  which  have  been 
described  are  looked  upon  with  much  popular  dis- 
trust, and  are  held  to  be  against  well  established  con- 
siderations of  public  policy.  In  the  minds  of  the 
great  majority,  and  not  without  reason,  the  idea  of 
any  industrial  combination  is  closely  connected  with 
that  of  monopoly,  and  monopoly  with  extortion.  In 
view  of  this  fact,  it  is  very  pertinently  asked, — Why 
should  a railroad  combination,  avowedly  intended  to 
hold  competition  in  check,  if  not  to  put  an  end  to  it, 
produce  any  result  other  than  the  natural  and  obvious 
one  of  raising  prices? — Who  or  what  is  to  protect  the 
community  against  the  extortions  of  these  great  cor- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


1 8 1 


porations,  should  they  cease  to  quarrel  and  compete 
among  themselves  ? — In  the  first  place,  conceding  all 
its  evils  and  objectionable  features, — its  inherent 
wastefulness,  its  harsh  inequities,  its  violent  fluctua- 
tions,— the  question  still  remains  an  open  one,  wheth- 
er competition,  as  it  has  hitherto  existed,  is  not  after 
all  at  least  for  America  the  best  and  the  final  solu- 
tion of  the  railroad  problem.  If,  indeed,  from  this 
point  of  view,  any  railroad  problem  can  be  said  to  ex- 
ist. The  considerations  which  lead  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  may  be,  have  been  very  clearly  stated  in  a 
recent  public  document : 

“ The  evils  incident  to  competition  are  sharply  defined  and 
incisive,  but  the  benefits  it  affords  are  substantial  and  pervading. 
The  beneficent  law  of  supply  and  demand  where  it  operates 
most  freely  may  not  secure  systematic  justice,  and  yet  the  whole 
world  concedes  that,  so  far  as  it  is  operative,  it  secures  substan- 
tial justice.  This  is  all  that  can  be  expected  in  the  present  con- 
dition of  human  affairs.  Competition  may  not  make  all  things 
even,  but  it  affords  a nearer  approach  to  equitable  dealing  among 
men  than  any  substitute  which  has  yet  been  proposed  for  the 
natural  laws  of  trade.  The  very  instability  of  competition  is  the 
surest  safeguard  of  the  public  interests.  When  competition 
ceases  to  be  irresponsible,  monopoly  will  step  in,  unless  it  be 
substituted  by  the  autocratic  rule  of  a combination  sufficiently 
powerful  to  control  all  the  transportation  lines  of  the  country. 
Any  arbitrary  rule  in  whatever  manner  formulated,  or  by  what- 
ever agency  exercised,  would  prove  to  be  an  impotent  substitute 
for  the  great  beneficent  law  of  competition  in  the  irresponsibility 
and  instability  of  which  is  embraced  that  conservatism  which 
inheres  in  the  untrammelled  operations  of  natural  forces. 

“ So  intimately  are  the  interests  of  transportation  and  of  trade 


182 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


connected,  that  it  is  impossible  to  eliminate  competition  between 
the  railroads  without  doing  violence  to  commercial  interests,  and 
thereby  working  greater  evils  than  those  sought  to  be  re- 
moved. . . . 

“ It  has  been  supposed  that  in  the  contests  between  the  trunk 
lines  the  strongest  company  or  combination  of  companies  inva- 
riably remains  master  of  the  field.  It  has,  however,  come  to  be 
almost  an  aphorism  among  railroad  managers  that  the  weakest 
line  determines  the  rates.  ...  It  has  also  been  supposed 
that  the  combination  between  the  railroads  of  the  country  is 
yearly  becoming  closer  and  more  powerful.  The  facts  which 
have  been  hereinbefore  adduced  seem  to  indicate,  however,  that 
the  extension  of  the  railway  system  has  tended  to  create  new 
elements  of  competition,  and  to  render  the  adjustment  of  through 
routes  more  difficult.  Every  trunk  line  has  many  interests 
outside  of,  and  which  cannot  possibly  be  embraced  within  the 
terms  of  any  combination  with  other  trunk  lines ; and  it  has 
been  found  that  sooner  or  later  these  collateral  interests  lead  to 
the  infraction  of  any  conditions  which  the  ingenuity  of  railroad 
managers  has  yet  been  able  to  devise.  The  difficulty  appears 
to  be  that,  heretofore,  competing  companies,  in  attempting  to 
protect  themselves,  have  failed  to  arrive  at  a clear  understanding 
of  the  nature  and  limits  of  their  mutual  interests. 

“ As  the  promoters  of  the  great  railroad  organizations  connect- 
ing the  West  with  the  seaboard  have  pushed  their  lines  westward, 
they  have  seen  their  control  over  ‘ through  rates  ’ gradually  be- 
coming weaker  and  weaker,  and  the  idea  has  been  suggested  in 
the  interests  of  the  railroad  companies,  by  able  men,  that  the 
roads  ought  to  invoke  some  external  aid  in  order  to  maintain 
remunerative  rates,  or  at  least  to  avoid  the  necessity  of  at  times 
carrying  through  freight  at  an  absolute  loss.  Evidently,  it  would 
be  detrimental  to  the  public  interests  if  the  railroads  of  the  coun- 
try were  to  become  crippled  by  their  own  excesses,  but,  in  view 
of  the  beneficial  results  which  have  been  realized  from  the  regu- 
lating influence  which  competition  has  exerted  over  rates,  in 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


1S3 

the  great  commerce  between  the  West  and  the  East,  and  be- 
tween all  important  centres  of  trade  which  enjoy  the  advantages 
of  two  or  more  rival  lines,  the  people  will  watch  with  favor  the 
gradual  extension  of  the  railway  system  by  which  means  the 
limits  of  the  local  or  non-competitive  traffic  are  being  con- 
tracted, and  the  limits  of  competitive  traffic  enlarged. 

“ It  appears  probable  as  the  facilities  of  transportation  are 
more  widely  extended  many  injurious  discriminations  will  disap- 
pear, and  that  the  legitimate  limits  of  the  traffic  of  rival  com- 
panies will  become  more  clearly  defined.  It  is  also  to  be  hoped 
that  the  various  companies  will,  upon  enlightened  views  of  self- 
interest,  formulate  and  acquiesce  in  such  regulations  with  respect 
to  their  common  interests  as  to  prevent  the  occurrence  of  those 
sudden  changes  of  rates  which  cause  erratic  diversions  of  traffic 
from  one  line  to  another  ; results  which  tend  to  destroy  confi- 
dence not  only  in  railroad  securities,  but  in  the  value  of  the 
entire  property  of  commercial  cities.  Such  changes  of  rates 
tend  to  depress  and  not  to  advance  commerce.”* 

The  opening  and  closing  considerations  pre- 
sented in  this  extract  are  somewhat  at  variance.  A 
combination  which  will  be  equal  to  the  difficult  task 
of  preventing  “ the  occurrence  of  those  sudden 
changes  of  rates  which  cause  erratic  diversions  of 
traffic,”  and  which  would  yet  not  be  “ sufficiently 
powerful  to  control  all  the  transportation  lines  of  the 
country,” — such  a combination  as  this  would  be  one 
difficult  at  least  to  devise.  That  the  law  of  compe- 
tition where  it  can  have  full  play  is  a most  beneficent 
one  in  its  operations,  few  would  care  to  deny.  As 
respects  the  railroad  system,  however,  the  whole 

* First  Annual  Report  on  the  Internal  Commerce  of  the  United 
States,  by  Joseph  Nimmo,  Jr.,  pp.  88-91. 


1 84  THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 

problem  happens  to  be  embraced  in  the  question, — 
Can  this  law  from  the  nature  of  the  case  there  find  full 
scope  for  its  operations? — If  it  can,  there  is  an  end  of 
the  matter.  There  is  then  no  problem  at  all  to  con- 
sider, for  competition  will  settle  the  whole  difficulty. 
But,  on  the  other  hand,  does  not  competition  in  the 
case  of  the  railroad  system,  necessarily,  while  working 
with  excessive  violence,  work  most  unequally? — In 
fine,  is  not  discrimination,  somewhere  and  against 
some  one,  the  logical  and  inevitable  result  of  every  un- 
controlled railroad  competition  ? And  is  it  not  mat- 
ter of  experience,  that  the  fiercer  the  competition 
grows,  the  harsher  the  discrimination  becomes? — If 
this  is  so,  can  such  results  be  classed  as  among  the 
usual  results  of  a “ great  beneficent  law  ? ” — This  is  the 
whole  question,  if  there  is  any  question  ; and  it  will  not 
do  to  beg  it.  That  “ the  weakest  line  determines  the 
rates,”  is  true ; but  it  would  also  seem,  from  the  ex- 
perience of  the  past,  that  it  will  continue  to  deter- 
mine them  only  so  long  as  the  stronger  line  does 
not  see  its  advantage  in  absorbing  it  through  lease, 
consolidation,  or  purchase.  A railroad  war  which 
does  not  end  in  a consolidation  of  lines  or  in  the 
absorption,  through  some  process,  of  one  line  by 
another,  is  an  indecisive  war,  and,  judging  by  all 
recent  experience,  will  almost  inevitably  be  renewed, 
soon  or  late.  That  the  ab'sorption  does  not  all 
take  place  at  once,  and  that  the  combining  pro- 
cess is  not  yet  over,  merely  proves  that  all  rail- 
road, like  other  wars,  are  not  decisive,  and  that  great 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  1 85 

processes  take  time  for  their  completion.  So  also  it 
is  true  that  the  limits  of  local  or  non-competitive 
traffic  are  undergoing  a steady  contraction  ; but  it  is 
this  very  fact  which  has  precipitated  the  recent 
destructive  railroad  wars.  These,  in  their  turn,  have 
then  rapidly  led  to  schemes  of  combination  between 
the  trunk  lines,  while  the  smaller  independent  lines, 
exhausted  by  competition,  have  been  forced  to  lose 
their  identity  in  one  or  another  of  the  contending 
systems.  The  consolidating  and  combining  influences 
of  the  last  ten  years  have,  indeed,  produced  results 
not  to  be  mistaken.  There  are,  also,  very  significant 
indications  that  the  railroad  system  of  this  country  is 
now  on  the  threshold  of  a most  active  and  unprece- 
dented development  in  that  way.  This  subject,  how- 
ever, will  more  naturally  be  referred  to  in  another 
connection.* 

Nevertheless,  the  history  of  railroad  development 
from  the  beginning  has  been  little  else  than  a con- 
stant succession  of  surprises.  That  which  was  most 
confidently  predicted  has  rarely  come  to  pass.  It 
may  well  be,  therefore,  that  in  the  present  case  those 
conditions  which  one  class  of  observers  regard  as 
wholly  transitional  may  by  degrees  be  found  to  con- 
tain in  them  the  elements  of  permanence ; while,  on 
the  other  hand,  those  indications  which  have  led  an- 
other class  of  observers  to  refer  to  events  now  taking 
place  as  “ incidents  in  a phase  of  the  process  of  de- 


* See  pp.  195-7* 


1 86 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


velopment,”  may  prove  to  have  been  mere  surface 
movements,  significant  of  nothing. 

Meanwhile,  the  combinations  of  railroads,  whether 
they  are  going  to  result  in  any  thing  more  than  they 
now  are  or  not,  do  exist  and  do  challenge  the  public 
consideration.  That  they  have  rapidly  developed  of 
late,  is  apparent.  That  they  may  develop  yet  more 
in  the  immediate  future,  is  very  probable.  They  in- 
volve in  their  continued  existence  the  whole  ques- 
tion of  competition  between  railroads  ; and,  whether 
they  are  to  grow  into  a system  or  not,  the  results, 
so  far  as  the  public  are  concerned,  which  may  nat- 
urally be  expected  to  flow  from  them,  either  in  their 
present  or  their  possible  form,  are  well  worthy  of 
discussion. 

Contrary  to  the  general  and  popular  conviction, 
an  increasing  number  of  those  who  have  given  most 
thought  to  the  subject,  whether  as  railroad  officers 
or  simply  from  the  general  economical  and  political 
points  of  view,  are  disposed  to  conclude  that,  so  far 
from  being  necessarily  against  public  policy,  a prop- 
erly regulated  combination  of  railroad  companies,  for 
the  avowed  purpose  of  controlling  competition,  might 
prove  a most  useful  public  agency.  These  persons 
contend  that  railroad  competition,  if  it  has  not  al- 
ready done  its  work,  will  have  done  it  at  a time  now 
by  no  means  remote.  An  enormous  developing 
force,  during  the  period  of  construction,  its  import- 
ance will  be  much  less  in  the  later  periods  of  more 
stable  adjustment.  Under  these  circumstances,  and 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


187 


recognizing  the  fact  that  the  period  of  organization 
is  now  succeeding  that  of  construction,  these  persons 
are  disposed  to  see  in  regulated  combination  the 
surest,  if  not,  indeed,  the  only  way  of  reaching  a sys- 
tem in  which  the  advantages  of  railroad  competition 
may,  so  far  as  possible,  be  secured  ; and  its  abuses, 
such  as  waste,  discrimination,  instability,  and  bank- 
ruptcy, be  greatly  modified  if  not  wholly  gotten  rid 
of.  In  conducting  its  traffic,  they  argue,  each  road 
or  combination  of  roads  is  now  a law  unto  itself.  It 
may  work  in  concert  with  other  roads  or  combina- 
tions, or  it  may  refuse  to  do  so.  It  may  make  rates 
to  one  place,  where  it  may  think  it  for  its  interest  that 
business  should  go,  and  may  refuse  to  make  them  to 
another  place  where  it  is  for  its  interest  that  business 
should  not  go.  All  this  is  essentially  wrong.  Yet  the 
business  community  of  America,  from  one  end  of  the 
country  to  the  other,  has  been  from  the  beginning  so 
thoroughly  accustomed  to  the  extreme  instabilities 
of  railroad  competition,  that  it  has  wholly  lost  sight 
of  what  its  own  interest  requires.  What  it  needs  is 
certainty, — a stable  economy  in  transportation, — 
something  that  can  be  reckoned  on  in  all  business 
calculations, — a fixed  quantity  in  the  problem.  This, 
of  all  results  the  most  desirable,  is  now  even  looked 
upon  with  apprehension.  There  is  an  idea,  the  re- 
sult of  long  habit,  in  the  public  mind,  that,  so  far  as 
transportation  is  concerned,  prosperity  is  to  be  secured 
through  a succession  of  temporary  local  advantages, 
— an  unending  cutting  of  rates.  The  idea  of  a great 


1 88 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


system  of  internal  transportation  at  once  reasonable, 
equitable,  and  certain, — permitting  traffic  to  flow  and 
interchanges  to  be  made  just  how  and  where  the  in- 
terests of  buyer  and  seller  dictate, — never  discrimi- 
nating,— rarely,  and  then  only  slowly,  fluctuating, — 
this  is  a conception  very  far  removed  from  the  reality, 
and  it  may  well  be  doubted  whether  now  it  even  com- 
mends itself  when  stated  to  the  average  man  of  busi- 
ness. He  clings,  on  the  contrary,  to  the  burden  of 
inequalities  to  which  he  is  accustomed,  and  is  in- 
clined to  doubt  whether  he  could  live  without  them. 
It  is  as  if  a mariner  had  become  so  habituated  to  a 
constant  succession  of  squalls  and  simooms,  that  he 
questioned  whether  it  would  be  possible  to  satisfac- 
torily navigate  a ship  in  trade-winds ; especially  if 
the  trade-winds  blew  for  all.  Accordingly,  equal 
rates,  no  matter  how  reasonable,  the  moment  they 
are  applied  are  looked  upon  by  the  favored  points  of 
competition,  like  Chicago  or  New  York,  as  in  some 
way  an  outrage.  These  points  have  become  so  accus- 
tomed to  discrimination  against  others  and  in  their 
own  favor  that  they  regard  it  as  a species  of  vested 
interest.  Their  boards  of  trade  call  upon  their 
legislatures  to  secure  it  to  them.  They  have  even 
gone  further  than  this,  and  presented  the  somewhat 
ludicrous  spectacle  of  modern  communities  claiming 
that  their  own  want  of  enterprise  and  wasteful 
methods  of  doing  business  should  be  prevented  from 
bringing  forth  their  legitimate  results  through  an  un- 
ending railroad  war.  So  possessed  are  they,  in- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . I 89 

deed,  with  this  idea,  that  it  may  safely  be  predicted 
that  the  principle  of  absolute  freedom  and  strict  im- 
partiality in  the  management  of  the  railroad  system 
of  America  as  a whole  will  only  be  reached  as  a re- 
sult of  long  discussion  and  in  the  face  of  strenuous 
resistance.  Meanwhile,  until  it  can  be  reached,  those 
composing  the  business  public,  as  well  as  the  stock- 
holding class,  must  reconcile  themselves  as  best  they 
can  to  frequent  repetitions  on  an  increasing  scale  of 
those  wild  fluctuations  and  ruinous  discriminations 
which  have  just  been  described  in  detail  in  the 
account  of  the  railroad  complications  since  1873. 
Nothing  of  the  sort  exists  in  any  other  portion  of  the 
world. 

If,  however,  any  approach  is  ever  to  be  made  to- 
wards that  ideal  state  of  affairs  which  has  just  been 
suggested,  it  can  apparently  be  made  only  in  one 
way.  The  abuses  incident  to  unhealthy  railroad 
competition  must  cease  ; and  undoubtedly  the  first 
step  towards  getting  rid  of  those  abuses  is  to  render 
the  railroad  system,  throughout  all  its  parts,  amena- 
ble to  some  healthy  control.  The  present  com- 
petitive chaos  must  be  reduced  into  something  like 
obedience  to  law.  Yet  this  apparently  can  only  be 
effected  when  the  system  is  changed  into  one 
orderly,  confederated  whole.  To  attempt  to  bring 
it  about  during  an  epoch  of  wars,  and  local  pools, 
and  conflicts  for  traffic,  would  be  as  futile  as  it  would 
have  been  to  enact  a code  of  laws,  unsupported  by 
force,  for  the  government  of  the  Scotch  Highland 


190 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


clans  in  the  sixteenth  century,  or  a parcel  of  native 
African  tribes  now.  A confederation,  or  even  a 
general  combination  among  all  the  railroad  corpora- 
tions having  some  degree  of  binding  force,  might, 
therefore,  as  has  been  suggested,  not  improbably 
prove  the  first  step  in  the  direction  of  a better  and 
more  stable  order  of  things.  But  to  lead  to  any  re- 
sults at  once  permanent  and  good  this  confederation 
must,  in  three  respects,  differ  radically  from  every- 
thing of  the  same  sort  which  has  hitherto  preceded 
it  : it  must  be  legal;  it  must  be  public;  it  must  be 
responsible. 

Tried  by  this  standard,  it  is  safe  to  say  that  none 
of  the  combinations  now  existing  are  consistent  either 
with  sound  views  of  public  policy,  or  have  in  them 
the  elements  of  permanence.  They  are,  in  the  first 
place,  secret  combinations  of  quasi  public  agencies  ; 
in  the  next  place,  as  respects  the  ends  they  have  in 
view  and  the  means  they  use  to  attain  those  ends, 
they  are  amenable  to  no  law  ; and,  finally,  they  are 
all  in  greater  or  less  degree  irresponsible  even  to 
public  opinion.  They  fail,  moreover,  even  to  accom- 
plish the  one  result  which,  if  practically  brought  about, 
might  justify  their  existence, — they  do  not  afford  to 
the  community  a reasonable  and  equable  system  of 
charges  for  carriage,  permitting  an  unchecked  flow  of 
travel  and  commerce,  the  continuation  of  which 
may  with  safety  be  calculated  upon.  A local  and 
makeshift  character  is  apparent  in  them  all,  and  is 
not  ignored  even  by  those  who  are  parties  to  them. 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  191 

Indeed,  every  disturbing  element  which  has  hereto- 
fore broken  up  other  combinations  is  latent  in  those 
now  existing  ; the  individuality  of  organization,  the 
distinct  separation  of  traffic,  the  armies  of  local  freight 
agents,  the  extending  of  connections.  While  the 
processes  of  pooling  are  going  on  and  during  the  very 
periods  of  truce,  there  is  not  a single  considerable 
line  in  any  one  of  the  combinations  which  is  not 
always  anxiously  looking  about  to  strengthen  itself 
in  case  of  an  ever-expected  renewal  of  war.  Under 
these  circumstances,  they  will  probably  last  only  so 
long  as  the  recollection  of  recent  losses  and  the 
costly  pressure  of  the  last  railroad  war  is  fresh  in  the 
minds  of  stockholders  and  officials.  Indeed,  it  is  safe 
to  say  that  the  greatest  of  all  these  combinations, 
that  of  the  trunk  lines,  is  held  together  only  by  the 
personal  influence  and  force  of  character  of  one  man, 
— its  commissioner,  Colonel  Fink. 

The  difficulties  which  stand  in  the  way  of  any 
permanent  organization  of  a beneficial  character  can, 
moreover,  hardly  be  exaggerated.  They  are  indeed 
so  numerous  and  so  great  that  it  is  regarded  as  little 
short  of  visionary  to  suggest  that  they  can  ever  be 
overcome.  In  the  first  place  there  is  no  one  legally 
authorized  to  enforce  the  peace  between  the  high 
contracting  parties.  Each  reserves  the  right  to  con- 
strue any  agreement  to  suit  itself,  and  in  the  last  re- 
sort to  refuse  obedience  to  the  decision  of  any  one. 
There  is  no  court  of  common  arbitrament  with  the 
sheriff’s  officer  behind  it.  Without  this,  all  railroad 


192 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


combinations  in  this  country,  where  a division  of  ter- 
ritory is  impracticable,  will  prove  but  temporary. 
Even  were  they,  under  certain  conditions,  practica- 
ble, they  are  now  rendered  more  than  precarious, 
owing  to  the  fact  that  the  whole  complicated  system 
under  which  through  or  competitive  railroad  business 
is  done  is  curiously  vicious  and  extravagant,  and  must 
be  radically  reformed  as  a preliminary  to  any  final  set- 
tlement. It  now  implies  the  presence  of  a vast  army 
of  subordinates  whose  very  existence  depends  on  that 
not  being  done,  which  those  controlling  the  lines 
which  feed  them  are  continually  trying  to  do.  To 
realize  the  truth  of  this  fact,  it  is  but  necessary  for 
any  person  to  walk  down  the  leading  business  streets 
of  any  considerable  town  in  the  country.  He  will 
see  that  a great  number  of  expensive  offices  bear  the 
signs  of  railroad  and  of  car  and  dispatch  companies, 
and  at  them  tickets  can  be  purchased  and  rates  ot 
freight  made  which  are  binding  on  all  the  connecting 
lines.  The  rents,  salaries  and  perquisites  of  the  army 
of  retainers  who  occupy  these  offices  come  out  of  the 
railroad  corporations,  and  the  interests  of  the  re- 
tainers and  the  corporations  are  exactly  antagonistic, 
— the  first  are  always  working  to  bring  about  railroad 
wars,  in  which  business  with  them  is  brisk,  while  the 
last  are  always  striving  to  effect  combinations. 

Beyond  and  behind  all  this,  however,  the  railroad 
corporations  of  the  United  States  have  from  the  be- 
ginning enjoyed  a sort  of  lawless  independence.  Cor- 
porations, like  communities,  accustomed  to  this,  neces- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


193 


sarily  remain  for  a long  time  restive  under  any  sense 
of  control.  They  need  constantly  to  feel  that  a police- 
man’s eye  is  upon  them,  and  that  there  is  a station- 
house  in  the  next  street.  No  one  or  two  great  corpo- 
rations have  yet  been  developed  with  power  sufficient 
to  assume  a coercive  protectorate  over  the  others  and 
to  compel  obedience.  The  combination  of  the  trunk 
lines  and  their  recent  action  towards  their  connec- 
tions in  the  West  is  the  first  approach  yet  made  to- 
wards this  result.  But  without  the  cohesive  influence 
of  some  such  protectorate  there  is  in  all  voluntary 
combinations  a natural  tendency  to  anarchy.  In  the 
absence,  therefore,  of  any  compelling  force  to  secure 
order  and  subordination,  the  mill  of  competition  has 
got  to  keep  on  grinding  for  some  time  yet.  Its  work 
is  not  done.  Indeed  it  will  not  be  done  until,  through 
the  process  of  its  grinding,  the  great  principle  of  the 
survival  of  the  fittest  is  finally  ground  out. 

This  process  is  unlikely  to  prove  a rapid  one, 
for  order  is  not  easily  established  in  any  community 
which  has  been  long  in  a state  of  anarchy.  In  such 
cases  the  demoralization  becomes  general ; the  tone 
of  the  individual  deteriorates.  This  is  what  is  now 
the  matter  with  the  railroad  system  in  America. 
Lawlessness  and  violence  among  themselves,  the 
continual  effort  of  each  member  to  protect  itself  and 
to  secure  the  advantage  over  others,  have,  as  they 
usually  do,  bred  a general  spirit  of  distrust,  bad  faith 
and  cunning,  until  railroad  officials  have  become 
hardly  better  than  a race  of  horse-jockeys  on  a large 
9 


194 


THE  FAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


scale.  There  are  notable  individual  exceptions  to  this 
statement,  but,  taken  as  a whole,  the  tone  among 
them  is  indisputably  low.  There  is  none  of  that  steady 
confidence  in  each  other,  that  easy  good  faith,  that 
esprit  de  corps,  upon  which  alone  system  and  order 
can  rest.  On  the  contrary,  the  leading  idea  in  the 
mind  of  the  active  railroad  agent  is  that  some  one 
is  always  cheating  him,  or  that  he  is  never  getting 
his  share  in  something.  If  he  enters  into  an  agree- 
ment, his  life  is  passed  in  watching  the  other  parties 
to  it,  lest  by  some  cunning  device  they  keep  it  in 
form  and  break  it  in  spirit.  Peace  is  with  him  always 
a condition  of  semi- warfare ; while  honor  for  its  own 
sake  and  good  faith  apart  from  self-interest  are,  in  a 
business  point  of  view,  symptoms  of  youth  and  defec- 
tive education.  Under  such  circumstances,  what  is 
there  but  force  upon  which  to  build  ? It  was  the 
absence  of  the  element  of  force  which  caused  the 
failure  of  the  Saratoga  association,  and  probably  will 
cause  the  failure  of  those  which  have  succeeded  it. 
Taken  as  a whole,  the  American  railroad  system  is  in 
much  the  same  condition  as  Mexico  and  Spain  are 
politically.  In  each  case  a Caesar  or  a Napoleon  is 
necessary.  When,  however,  the  time  is  ripe  and  the 
man  comes,  the  course  of  affairs  can  even  now  be 
foreshadowed  ; for  it  is  always  pretty  much  the  same. 
Instead  of  the  wretched  condition  of  chronic  semi- 
warfare which  now  exists,  there  will  be  one  decisive 
struggle,  in  which,  from  the  beginning  to  the  end, 
the  fighting  will  be  forced.  There  will  be  no  patched- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


195 


up  truces,  made  only  to  be  broken,  for  the  object  of 
that  struggle  will  be  the  complete  ruin  of  some  one 
in  the  shortest  possible  time.  Then  will  come  the 
combination  of  a few  who  will  be  sufficiently  power- 
ful to  restrain  the  many.  The  result,  expressed  in 
few  words,  would  be  a railroad  federation  under  a pro- 
tectorate. The  united  action  of  the  great  through 
lines  is  necessary  to  bring  this  about ; and  how  to 
secure  that  action  is  now  the  problem.  If  the  elder 
Vanderbilt  were  alive  and  in  the  full  possession  of  his 
powers  he  probably  would  solve  the  difficulty  in  the 
way  most  natural  to  him.  Meanwhile,  although  Com- 
modore Vanderbilt  is  dead,  there  are  very  significant 
indications  that  his  work  is  going  on.  His  vast  prop- 
erty, in  the  peculiar  shape  in  which  he  left  it  and  as  it 
is  now  handled,  seems  to  be  little  else  than  an  accu- 
mulating fund  devoted  to  bringing  about  a consolida- 
tion of  railroad  interests  on  the  largest  possible  scale. 
The  New  York  Central  is  the  basis  upon  which  this 
superstructure  rests.  The  Vanderbilt  interest  in  the 
property  is  so  great  that  practically  the  earnings  of 
this  road,  instead  of  being  dissipated  among  innumer- 
able stockholders,  as  is  the  case  with  the  other  trunk 
lines,  are  continually  applied  to  securing  the  control  of 
other  and  connecting  lines, — first  the  Lake  Shore, 
then  the  Canada  Southern,  then  the  Michigan  Cen- 
tral. Scarcely  during  the  last  few  years  has  one  of 
these  connections  been  absorbed  before  rumor  has 
announced  that  operations  have  been  begun  upon 
another.  The  Erie,  the  Atlantic  & Great  Western 


196 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


and  the  Wabash  are  supposed  to  be  the  next  in  order. 
The  precedent  established  by  the  father  in  buying  up 
the  Hudson  River  road  in  one  lump  in  order  to  put 
a stop  to  its  competition  with  the  Harlem,  is  appa- 
rently being  followed  on  a larger  scale  by  the  son. 

While  this  is  going  on  in  the  East  under  the 
Vanderbilt  lead,  two  other  and  precisely  similar 
“ one-man  ” combinations  are  assuming  shape, — the 
one  in  the  central  region  of  the  country  west  of  the 
Missouri,  and  the  other  on  the  Pacific  slope.  They, 
also,  are  built  upon  the  principle  of  devoting  the 
earnings  to  the  development  of  the  business,  and  not 
to  the  support  of  stockholders.  Accordingly  compe- 
tition does  not  now  exist  within  the  sphere  of  influ- 
ence of  these  combinations,  and  its  existence  is  rap- 
idly becoming  impossible  ; for,  as  soon  as  it  makes 
itself  felt,  the  competing  line  is  bought  out  of  the 
way.  In  this  way  the  Union  Pacific  combination 
now  controls  seven  corporations  owning  and  operating 
3,000  miles  of  track  in  the  heart  of  the  continent, — 
an  absolutely  controlling  interest; — while  on  the 
western  coast  the  Pacific  Central  occupies  an  even 
more  commanding  position. 

In  presence  of  such  a policy  as  is  common  to  all 
these  interests,  backed  by  such  resources,  the  “ fight- 
ing ” superintendent  finds  his  proper  level.  His  day 
is  over.  The  period  of  indecisive  railroad  wars  is 
drawing  to  a close.  The  development  in  these  cases 
is  moreover  made  with  ready  money  ; — that  is,  the 
earnings  of  the  combinations  are  continually  accumu- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


I97 


lated  in  the  business.  There  is  no  toppling  super- 
structure of  debt.  Those  earnings  aggregate  millions 
a year.  In  view  of  these  facts  there  would  seem  to 
be  some  ground  for  supposing,  as  was  suggested  in 
another  connection,  that  the  railroad  system  of  this 
country  is  now  on  the  threshold  of  a most  active  and 
unprecedented  consolidating  development,  and  that 
the  question  of  the  survival  of  the  fittest  among  rail- 
roads may  here  be  decided  at  a less  remote  day  than 
is  usually  supposed. 

But,  however  this  may  be,  it  is  a question  of  the 
future  and  certainly  has  no  immediate  bearing  on 
the  existing  combinations.  Of  these  the  only  one 
which  seems  entitled  to  any  thoughtful  consideration 
is  the  Southern  Railroad  and  Steamship  Association. 
So  far  as  the  public  is  concerned,  everything  essential 
as  a safeguard  against  abuse  seems  in  the  case  of  that 
association  to  be  provided.  It  is  a complete,  but  not 
a secret  combination.  It  exists  in  the  full  light  of 
publicity.  The  purposes  for  which  it  was  organized 
are  openly  avowed,  and  its  every  transaction  is,  or 
may  easily  be  made,  matter  of  general  observation. 
To  secure  this  result  it  would  only  be  necessary  to 
give  it  legal  recognition.  By  its  originators  it  is  con- 
fidently claimed  that,  if  properly  developed  and 
recognized  by  legislation,  it  would  afford  a complete 
and  practical  solution  of  the  American  railroad  prob- 
lem. Whether  it  would  or  no,  it  is  certainly  a great 
advance  on  any  other  form  of  solution  which  has  yet 
been  suggested.  It  is  at  once  far  more  philosophi- 


198 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM, 


cal,  more  practical,  and  more  in  consonance  with 
American  political  usages  and  modes  of  thought. 
Indeed,  it  is  not  easy  to  point  out  any  respect  in 
which  it  might  not  fairly  be  accepted  as  the  natural 
and  logical  outgrowth  of  American  railroad  develop- 
ment, as  it  has  gone  on  up  to  this  time.  The  diffi- 
culty with  all  of  the  many  other  solutions  which  have 
from  time  to  time  been  suggested  has  been  that  they 
disregarded  what  had  gone  before ; they  were  none 
of  them  in  the  nature  of  a logical  sequence  or  natural 
outgrowth.  Those  who  originated  them  sought  to 
deal  with  a vast  and  complicated  system  as  if  it  were 
so  much  plastic  material,  to  be  handled  and  shaped 
at  will.  Both  the  scheme  for  the  state  ownership  of 
railroads,  and  the  measures  of  Granger  legislation 
failed  and  were  abandoned,  for  this  reason, — they 
were  not  sequences  ; and  while  the  first  could  not 
stand  the  test  of  discussion,  the  last  broke  down  in 
practice.  The  idea  of  regulating  all  railroads  through 
the  state  ownership  of  one, — the  Belgian  system, — 
was  some  years  ago  brought  forward,  and  urged  on 
legislative  attention  by  the  Massachusetts  commis- 
sion as  at  least  worthy  of  careful  inquiry.  Subse- 
quently it  was  examined  into  more  carefully  in  con- 
nection with  a Massachusetts  enterprise  in  which  the 
state  already  held  a controlling  interest,  and  the 
practical  difficulties  and  objections,  both  political  and 
financial,  which  presented  themselves  were  of  such  a 
nature  that  those  engaged  in  the  investigation,  al- 
though one  of  them  was  a member  of  the  commission 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


I99 


and  as  such  committed  to  the  theory,  unanimously 
found  themselves  compelled  “ by  the  logic  of  their  in- 
vestigations, regardless  of  preconceived  theories,5’  to 
another  result. 

Irresponsible  and  secret  combinations  among  rail- 
roads always  have  existed,  and,  so  long  as  the  rail- 
road system  continues  as  it  now  is,  they  unquestion- 
ably always  will  exist.  No  law  can  make  two  cor- 
porations, any  more  than  two  individuals,  actively 
undersell  each  other  in  any  market  if  they  do  not 
wish  to  do  so.  But  they  can  only  cease  doing  so  by 
agreeing  in  public  or  in  private  on  a price,  below 
which  neither  will  sell.  If  they  cannot  do  this  pub- 
licly, they  will  assuredly  do  it  secretly.  This  is  what, 
with  alternations  of  conflict,  the  railroad  companies 
always  have  done  in  one  way  or  another ; and  this  is 
what  they  are  now  doing  and  must  always  continue 
to  do,  until  a complete  change  of  conditions  is 
brought  about.  Against  this  practice,  the  moment 
it  begins  to  assume  any  character  of  responsibility  or 
permanence,  statutes  innumerable  have  been  aimed, 
and  clauses  strictly  interdicting  it  have  of  late  been 
incorporated  into  several  state  constitutions.  The  ex- 
perience of  the  last  few  years,  if  it  has  proved  nothing 
else,  has  conclusively  demonstrated  how  utterly  im- 
potent and  futile  such  enactments  and  provisions 
necessarily  are.  Starting,  then,  from  this  point — ac- 
cepting what  is  and  what  must  continue  to  be — the 
fundamental  idea  of  the  Southern  Steamship  and 
Railroad  Association  is  to  legalize  a practice  which 


200 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


the  law  cannot  prevent,  and,  by  so  doing  to  enable 
the  railroads  to  confederate  themselves  in  a manner 
which  shall  be  at  once  both  public  and  responsible. 
This  is  the  railroad  side  of  the  question.  The  other 
side  of  the  question — that  of  the  public — admits  of  a 
statement  equally  clear.  Its  essential  point,  how- 
ever, is  that,  through  this  process,  and  this  process 
only,  can  the  railroad  system  as  an  organized  whole 
be  brought  face  to  face  with  any  public  and  controll- 
ing force,  whether  of  law  or  public  opinion.  Once 
let  the  railroad  companies  confederate  in  accordance 
with  law,  and  the  process  through  which  this  all-im- 
portant confronting  result  would  be  brought  about  is 
apparent.  The  confederation  would  be  a responsible 
one,  with  power  to  enforce  its  own  decisions  upon  its 
own  members.  The  principles  upon  which  it  could  act, 
as  a creature  of  the  law,  would  be  formulated  in  the 
law.  It  could  compel  obedience,  but  obedience  only 
to  legal  decrees,  and  the  question  in  each  case  would 
be  whether  the  decree  was  legal.  At  exactly  this 
point  the  machinery  for  state  supervision  would  come 
into  play  in  the  form  of  a special  tribunal ; like  those 
which  have  already  been  provided  in  England  and 
France,  or  that  now  being  matured  in  the  Prussian 
parliament.  The  field  of  discussion  before  this  tri- 
bunal would  be  commensurate  with  the  whole  sub- 
ject of  transportation  by  rail,  including  questions  not 
only  of  law  but  of  economy.  Then,  at  last,  the  cor- 
rect principles  governing  railroad  traffic  would  be 
in  course  of  rapid  development.  The  essential  fea- 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


201 


tures  of  what  constitutes  discrimination  and  extor- 
tion would  gradually  be  formulated  into  rules,  and 
the  moment  that  is  accomplished  competition  will 
work  equitably.  This  result  must  follow.  It  must 
follow,  from  the  fact  that  competition  is  now  almost 
entirely  local.  That  is,  a competitive  rate  to  or  from 
one  point,  in  no  way  necessarily  affects  rates  to  or 
from  other  points, — a local  variation  does  not  cause 
the  whole  schedule  to  move  up  or  down.  This  is 
what  makes  discrimination.  Could  the  system  be 
confederated  and  equalized,  however,  such  would 
not  be  the  case.  An  established  tariff,  intended  to 
be  public  and  permanent,  would  then  have  to  be 
fixed  upon,  just  as  it  is  to-day  fixed  upon  in  each  of 
the  local  pools  which  have  been  described.  This  tariff, 
however,  would,  of  necessity,  fluctuate  throughout 
under  the  pressure  of  competition  at  any  one  point. 
For  instance,  a lake-rate  to  be  met  at  Chicago  would 
affect  the  land-rate  from  Louisville  ; if  it  did  not, 
one  point  would  be  discriminated  against,  as  it  now 
perpetually  is,  in  favor  of  the  other.  In  like  manner 
a river-rate  from  St.  Louis  would  affect  the  land-rate 
from  Chicago.  Thus  the  principle  of  the  all-pervading 
action  of  competition  would  be  generally  established 
through  a confederation,  as  it  is  locally  established 
through  combinations  to-day.  In  this  way,  full  effect 
would  be  given  to  that  natural  and  healthy  competi- 
tion which  is  now  so  successfully  localized,  while 
railroad  discrimination  would  be  effectually  repressed. 
Discrimination  being  thus  disposed  of,  it  would  then 
9* 


202 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


only  remain  to  guard  against  extortion.  That  would 
not,  apparently,  be  difficult.  In  the  first  place,  it 
would  probably  be  found  that  the  effect  of  natural 
competition  would,  once  the  play  of  its  forces  was 
made  all-pervading,  afford  the  necessary  protection. 
If  it  did  not,  the  extortion  would  have  to  be  practiced 
openly,  and  by  a responsible  agent  upon  whom  the 
whole  force  of  public  opinion  might  and  would  be  di- 
rected. Should  this  fail  to  produce  the  desired  effect, 
the  central  agency  being  responsible  to  the  law  as  well 
as  to  public  opinion,  recourse  could  finally  be  had  to 
legislation.  Beyond  this,  it  does  not  seem  worth  while 
at  present  to  carry  the  discussion.  The  first  step  is, 
necessarily,  to  accustom  the  public  mind  to  the  idea 
that  railroad  combinations  possibly  may  be  an  evil 
only  because  they  are  unrecognized,  and  that  the 
proper  way  to  deal  with  them  may,  perhaps,  be 
through  regulation  and  not  through  prohibition. 

In  pursuing  the  discussion,  however,  care  must 
be  taken  lest  the  argument  against  competition  is 
carried  too  far,  or  is  not  properly  understood.  It 
will  not  do  to  rush  from  one  extreme  to  the  other. 
The  natural  question  which  has  already  been  sug- 
gested must  be  clearly  borne  in  mind  : — Why  should 
a railroad  combination,  avowedly  intended  to  hold 
competition  in  check,  if  not  to  put  an  end  to  it,  pro- 
duce any  result  other  than  the  natural  and  obvious 
one  of  raising  prices? — Who  or  what  is  to  protect  the 
community  against  the  extortions  of  these  great  cor- 
porations, should  they  cease  to  quarrel  and  compete 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  203 

among  themselves? — And,  in  the  first  place,  it  must 
be  frankly  acknowledged  that  the  argument  against 
railroad  competition  can  only  be  advanced  subject  to 
great  limitations.  Undoubtedly  the  fierce  struggles 
between  rival  corporations  which  marked  the  history 
of  railroad  development,  both  here  and  in  England, 
were  very  prominent  factors  in  the  work  of  forcing 
the  systems  of  the  two  countries  up  to  their  piesent 
degree  of  efficiency.  Railroad  competition  has  been 
a great  educator  for  railroad  men.  It  has  not  only 
taught  them  how  much  they  could  do,  but  also  how 
very  cheaply  they  could  do  it.  Under  the  strong 
stimulus  of  rivalry  they  have  done  not  only  what  they 
declared  were  impossibilities,  but  what  they  really 
believed  to  be  such.  None  the  less,  extraordinary 
as  these  results  have  been,  they  have  been  reached 
only  at  an  excessive  cost  ; a cost  so  excessive  as  to 
show  clearly  that  the  process  is  one  which  cannot  be 
continued  indefinitely.  Under  the  incessant  strain 
of  competition  the  number  of  competitors  is  being 
steadily  reduced.  The  present  question,  therefore, 
is  not  whether  good  results  have  ever  been  secured 
through  railroad  competition,  but  whether  the  same 
or  even  better  results  may  not  now  be  secured 
through  other  and  less  costly  processes.  During  the 
last  forty  years  the  railroad  system  has  grown,  and 
experience  has  grown  with  it.  During  that  time, 
also,  competition  has  to  a degree  expended  its  force, 
and  is  now  obviously  working  its  way  out  to  a final 
result.  If  that  result  is  to  be  a legalized  confedera- 


204 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


tion  it  must  be  borne  clearly  in  mind  that,  while 
railroad  competition  would  cease,  the  influence  of 
every  other  form  of  competition, — sea,  lake,  river  and 
canal, — would  through  the  machinery  of  that  confed- 
eracy be  economized  and  extended  to  its  utmost  pos- 
sible limit.  If  the  confederacy  were  touched  by  com- 
petition at  one  point,  it  would  feel  it  at  all  points. 
Throughout,  its  rates  would  rise  and  fall  together. 
Thus  if  one  form  of  competition  should  cease,  another 
would  be  prodigiously  quickened. 

But  allowing  even  the  monopoly  to  become  com- 
plete, and  having  only  such  forms  and  degrees  of  re- 
straint as  law,  usage,  public  sentiment  and  self-inter- 
est can  supply,  we  are  by  no  means  without  analo- 
gous cases  having  a very  close  bearing  on  the  argu- 
ment. In  our  cities,  for  instance,  as  regards  the 
supply  of  gas,  it  is  found  cheaper  and  better  for  the 
community  to  have  to  do  with  one  company  than 
with  several.  So  also  as  respects  the  supply  of 
water.  In  this  country  it  is  now  usual  for  cities  and 
towns  to  construct  their  own  water  works.  If  this, 
however,  were  not  the  case,  few  would  be  disposed 
to  deny  that  a city  having  to  do  with  a single  aque- 
duct company  would  be  apt  to  have  a much  more 
satisfactory  service  than  one  which  sought  to  divide 
it  among  many.  Carrying  now  the  argument  directly 
into  the  case  of  railroads,  and  having  recourse  again 
to  experience,  we  find  that  railroad  competition  has 
been  tried  all  over  the  world,  and  that  everywhere, 
consciously  or  unconsciously,  but  with  one  consent, 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


205 


it  is  slowly  but  surely  being  abandoned.  In  its 
place  the  principle  of  responsible  and  regulated  mo- 
nopoly is  asserting  itself.  The  same  process,  varied 
only  by  the  differing  economical,  social,  and  political 
habits  and  modes  of  thought  of  the  people,  is  going 
on  in  France,  in  Belgium,  in  Germany,  and  in  Great 
Britain.  The  experience  of  the  three  first  named 
countries  bears  much  less  strongly  than  that  of  Eng- 
land on  the  particular  conditions  existing  in  America, 
yet  even  for  us  their  experience  is  not  without  its 
significance.  In  France  we  see  six  great  corpora- 
tions dividing  the  country  into  as  many  distinct  ter- 
ritories, and  each  of  the  six  directly  responsible  for 
the  territory  served  by  it ; while  both  these  corpora- 
tions and  the  government  view  with  undisguised  ap- 
prehension the  recent  appearance  of  a competing, 
though  subsidiary,  system.  In  Prussia,  a plan  of 
close  government  supervision  through  a special  cabi- 
net officer,  a member  of  the  ministry,  is  now  being 
matured,  while  elsewhere  in  Germany  the  lines  are 
rapidly  passing  into  the  hands  of  the  governments, 
or  under  their  more  immediate  control.  Apart,  how- 
ever, from  this,  the  German  experience  in  one  respect 
deserves  peculiar  notice.  The  local  and  governmen- 
tal subdivisions  of  Germany,  more  than  those  of  any 
other  country  of  Europe,  resemble  our  federated  sys- 
tem of  states.  Placed  in  the  centre  of  Europe, 
Germany  is  a species  of  thoroughfare,  while  at  the 
same  time  the  individual  members  of  its  railroad  sys- 
tem belong  under  different  jurisdictions.  Here,  then, 


206 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


every  condition  is  found  which  is  likely  to  incite 
an  uncontrolled  railroad  competition.  To  a degree 
it  existed,  at  one  period,  but  the  German  temper 
and  habits  of  thought  are  so  different  from  the 
American  that  competition  there  speedily  resulted  in 
combination.  The  German  railroad  union,  including 
as  it  does  nearly  one  hundred  different  manage- 
ments, operating  twenty-six  thousand  miles  of  track, 
actually  accomplishes  many  of  the  results  which  the 
Saratoga  and  Atlanta  combinations  were  designed 
to  accomplish.  It  makes  all  necessary  arrange- 
ments respecting  joint  traffic,  settles  questions  of 
fares  and  freight,  and  substitutes  arbitration  for  wars 
of  rates.  It  has  to  a certain  degree  introduced  uni- 
formity and  stability  into  the  system.  The  fact  that 
such  an  association  is  easily  formed  in  Germany,  and 
is  formed  only  with  the  greatest  difficulty  in  America, 
proves  nothing  except  the  powerful  influence  of  na- 
tional thought  and  temper.  A certain  amount  of 
waste  and  confusion  sufficed  to  bring  a system  into 
being  in  the  one  case ; the  present  question  is,  how 
much  more  waste  and  how  much  greater  degree  of 
confusion  will  be  necessary  to  bring  a somewhat  sim- 
ilar system  into  being  in  the  other  case? 

In  Belgium  alone  has  railroad  competition  proved 
a permanent  advantage;  and  it  has  proved  so  there 
for  the  simple  reason  that  the  competition  between 
railroads  in  Belgium,  unlike  that  in  the  United  States, 
was  never  uncontrolled.  A hand  was  always  on  the 
regulator.  The  government,  as  the  largest  owner  of 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


207 


railroads,  was  itself  the  chief  competitor,  and  as  such 
its  action  was  certain,  equitable,  and  justly  distri- 
buted. It  could  not  show  preferences,  or  discriminate, 
or  make  good  the  losses  sustained  in  fighting  over  a 
divided  business  out  of  profits  exported  from  an  ex- 
clusive business.  Regulated  in  this  way,  competi- 
tion could  be  kept  alive  and  made  beneficial.  It 
did  not  wear  itself  out  by  its  own  excesses. 

Of  all  foreign  experiences,  however,  that  of  Eng- 
land most  resembles  our  own.  The  only  essential 
difference  is  that  England  is  wealthier  and  infinitely 
more  compact  than  the  United  States,  so  that,  as 
respects  railroads,  causes  produced  their  results  much 
more  quickly  there  than  here.  Nowhere,  however, 
is  the  present  tendency  towards  the  concentration 
of  railroad  interests  in  a few  hands  more  apparent 
than  in  England.  The  mill  of  competition  has  there 
about  fulfilled  its  allotted  work.  The  whole  English 
railway  system  has  now  passed  into  the  hands  of  a 
few  great  companies,  by  whom  the  country  is  prac- 
tically divided  into  separate  districts.  These  are 
literally  in  the  hands  of  monopolies.  The  practical 
result  of  this  consolidation,  as  compared  with  the 
old-fashioned  competition,  was  set  forth  in  two  con- 
crete cases  by  the  parliamentary  committee  on  rail- 
way amalgamation  of  1872,  in  language  which  has 
already  been  quoted,  but  which  in  this  connection 
will  bear  repetition. 

The  North-Eastern  railway  “ is  composed  of 
thirty-seven  lines,  several  of  which  formerly  com- 


208 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


peted  with  each  other.  Before  their  amalgamation 
they  had,  generally  speaking,  high  rates  and  fares, 
and  low  dividends.  The  system  is  now  the  most 
complete  monopoly  in  the  United  Kingdom;  from 
the  Tyne  to  the  Humber,  with  one  local  exception, 
it  has  the  country  to  itself,  and  it  has  the  lowest 
fares  and  the  highest  dividends  of  any  large  English 
railway.  It  has  had  little  or  no  litigation  with  other 
companies.  While  complaints  have  been  heard 
from  Lancashire  and  Yorkshire,  where  there  are  so- 
called  competing  lines,  no  witness  has  appeared  to 
complain  of  the  North-Eastern;  and  the  general 
feeling  in  the  district  it  serves  appears  favorable  to 
its  management. ” * 

There  is  scarcely  a section  of  the  United  States 
which  could  not  tell  of  an  experience  very  like 
the  English  one  just  referred  to.  Massachusetts, 
for  instance,  could  supply  a well-known  case  in 
point.  Of  two  sections  of  that  state  lying  north 
and  south  of  the  city  of  Boston,  the  one  known 
as  the  Cape  Ann  and  the  other  as  the  Cape  Cod  dis- 
trict, the  first  has  from  the  beginning  been  served  by 
two  rival  lines  whose  whole  history  has  been  one 
long  trial  of  strength,  resulting  at  last  in  the  abso- 
lute ruin  of  one  and  in  the  severe  crippling  of 
the  other.  How  many  millions  of  dollars  were  reck- 
lessly squandered  in  the  long  course  of  the  struggle, 
it  is  impossible  to  compute.  While  the  Cape  Ann 

* Report  from  Select  Committee  on  Railway  Companies  Amalga- 
mation (1872),  page  xxvii. 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


209 


district  has  thus  enjoyed  the  benefits  of  railroad 
competition,  the  southern  or  Cape  Cod  district  has, 
on  the  other  hand,  been  served  by  a single  consoli- 
dated corporation,  the  cardinal  principle  with  which 
has  been  monopoly.  It  appropriated  to  itself  a cer- 
tain district,  and  that  district  it  undertook  to  furnish 
with  all  reasonable  railroad  facilities  ; but  within  the 
limits  of  its  own  territory  it  did  not  propose  to  tol- 
erate any  rival.  The  result  in  these  two  cases, 
whether  in  accordance  with  theory  or  not,  is  confir- 
matory of  experience.  Between  its  two  rival  cor- 
porations the  northern  district  was  through  years 
converted  into  a battle-ground,  and  turned  upside 
down  ; rates  fluctuated  wildly  and  varied  every- 
where ; common  tariffs  were  made  and  not  observed, 
and  profits  were  pooled ; bits  of  connecting  road 
were  seized  hold  of  by  the  one  combatant  or  the 
other,  and  were  perverted  from  serving  the  commu- 
nity into  being  engines  of  attack  or  defence.  As  to 
the  two  companies,  with  that  impenetrable  stupidity 
which  usually  characterizes  the  lover  of  petty  inde- 
pendence, they  sturdily  preferred  to  lose  thousands 
in  conflict  rather  than  incur  the  risk  of  being  over- 
reached in  negotiation  by  so  much  as  a dollar. 
Each  of  them  absolutely  threw  away  enough  money 
to  buy  up  the  other  in  that  stupid  fighting  in  which 
thick-headed  presidents  and  “ smart  ” superintend- 
ents uniformly  delight.  The  one  meant  <c  to  get 
even  with  the  other,”  and  both  were  resolved, 
no  matter  how  much  it  cost,  to  have  its  “ share 


210 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


of  the  business.”  Between  them  they  ruined  the 
business,  dissatisfied  every  one,  and  then — came 
to  terms  with  each  other.  Meanwhile,  in  the  south- 
eastern section  of  the  state  peace  certainly  pre- 
vailed, if  not  absolute  contentment.  As  respects 
railroads  this  last  it  is  not  well  to  expect,  and,  if 
expected,  it  will  not  be  found.  Nevertheless  it  is 
certainly  true  that,  according  to  general  experi- 
ence, the  nearest  approach  to  it  is  reached,  not  only 
abroad  but  here,  through  the  course  pursued  in  this 
case.  The  reliance  on  competition  seems  to  give 
throughout  a false  direction  to  public  opinion  as 
respects  railroads.  They  are  looked  upon  as  some- 
thing alien,  if  not  hostile.  The  public  welfare  is  as- 
sociated in  the  popular  mind  with  their  misfortunes. 
On  the  other  hand  the  intelligent  and  peaceful  ope- 
ration of  a consolidated  company  is  generally  fol- 
lowed by  a sense  of  responsibility  on  the  one  side, 
and  of  ultimate  friendliness  on  the  other. 

Besides  the  economical  arguments  which  are  so 
difficult  to  be  overcome  in  this  discussion,  there  are 
certain  other  objections  to  any  such  solution  of  the 
railroad  problem  as  that  suggested,  which  cannot  be 
ignored.  They  have  at  least  a strong  hold  on  the 
popular  ear  and  mind.  In  their  character  they  are 
political  or  sentimental.  As  respects  those  of  the 
first  description,  it  is  certainly  not  too  much  to  say 
that  jealousy  of  great  corporations  is  a cardinal  arti- 
cle in  American  political  faith.  There  is  reason  for 
it,  too  ; and  in  this  respect  recent  scandals  have 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM.  21  I 

given  to  railroad  corporations  a peculiar  and  un- 
pleasant prominence.  Neither  is  this  instinctive 
jealousy  confined  to  America.  It  is  only  a very 
few  years  since  the  present  Sir  Henry  Tyler  in 
one  of  the  reports  of  the  Board  of  Trade  of  Great 
Britain,  formulated  the  proposition  that  the  time 
was  at  hand  when  “ the  state  must  control  the 
railroads  or  else  the  railroads  would  control  the 
state.”  Yet  when  the  parliamentary  committee  on 
amalgamations  considered  this  question  in  1872, 
they  were  obliged  to  report  that  the  “ growth  of  the 
corporations  had  not  brought  with  it  the  evils  gen- 
erally anticipated.”  The  fact  is  that  in  this,  as  in  so 
many  other  instances,  the  truth  of  Mr.  Disraeli's 
aphorism,  that  “ in  politics  it  is  the  unexpected 
which  is  apt  to  occur,”  received  fresh  illustration. 
In  this  country,  as  well  as  in  Great  Britain,  those 
wise  people  who  so  earnestly  point  out  the  dangers 
incident  to  railroad  concentration  wholly  ignore  the 
important  practical  fact  that  concentration  not  only 
brings  with  it  a corresponding  increase  of  jealousy, 
but  also  an  equally  increased  sense  of  responsibility. 
It  is  not  the  few  great  corporations  which  are  politi- 
cally dangerous,  but  the  many  log-rolling  little  ones. 
No  one  who  has  had  experience  in  dealing  before  a 
legislative  body  with  questions  affecting  railroad  in- 
terests has  failed  to  realize  this  fact.  The  burden 
of  responsibility — almost  of  popular  odium — which 
the  large  corporation  bears,  the  ease  with  which  a 
senseless  cry  can  be  raised  against  it,  is  even,  as 


212 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


compared  with  smaller  corporations,  out  of  all  pro- 
portion to  its  increased  strength.  So  much  has 
been  written  and  declaimed  on  this  subject,  however, 
that  it  is  well  to  be  as  distinct  as  possible  in  dealing 
with  it.  The  popular  apprehension  of  imaginary 
dangers  to  be  apprehended  from  railroad  consolida- 
tion is  not  well  considered.  With  those  who  have 
most  reflected  on  the  subject  it  is  safe  to  say  that 
the  idea  of  a combination  of  all  the  railroad  interests 
of  the  country  into  the  hands  of  three  or  four  corpo- 
rations,— even  though  they  might  practically  be  the 
creatures  of  a triumvirate’s  will, — would  excite  no 
apprehension.  That  corporation,  or  those  who  com- 
posed that  triumvirate,  would  retain  power  only  by 
most  carefully  abstaining  from  all  abuse  of  power. 
Little  as  those  who  expatiate  on  the  subject  seem 
to  realize  it,  it  is  nevertheless  true  that  with  each 
new  railroad  the  Vanderbilt  or  the  Jay  Gould  or  the 
Huntingdon  interest  acquires,  the  more  cautious  and 
conservative  they  become.  They  realize  the  respon- 
sibilities and  dangers  of  their  position,  if  their  critics 
do  not.  The  only  present  difficulty  is  that  those 
who  undertake  to  represent  the  community  neither 
understand  the  situation,  nor  know  how  to  take  ad- 
vantage of  it. 

Finally  it  remains  to  consider  the  sentimental 
objections.  The  combination  of  railroads,  it  is 
claimed,  is  unrepublican, — through  it  the  dynasty  of 
the  “ Railroad  Kings  ” is  insidiously  asserting  itself. 
This  argument  is  of  the  kind  which  sets  refutation 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


213 


at  defiance.  Not  infrequently  it  is  met  with  in  the 
columns  of  the  press,  but  it  is  an  argument  appro- 
priately addressed  only  to  that  discouragingly  large 
class  among  whom  words  are  money  and  not  coun- 
ters. It  is  unmitigated  cant,  and  deserves  only  to 
be  treated  as  such.  There  is  a principle  much 
nearer  the  foundation  of  republican  institutions  than 
any  jealousy  or  apprehension  of  Railroad  Kings — 
the  great  principle  of  not  unnecessarily  meddling. 
After  all,  men  and  systems  can  best  develop  them- 
selves in  their  own  way,  and  it  is  hardly  worth  while 
either  to  continually  prognosticate  evil,  or  to  pass 
one’s  life  in  fighting  shadows. 

Briefly  reviewing  the  whole  ground  which  has 
now  been  traversed,  it  is  obvious  that  the  tendency 
of  events  and  drift  of  discussion  are  everywhere  the 
same — away  from  a reliance  on  the  beneficial  effect  to 
be  derived  from  the  uncontrolled  competition  be- 
tween railroads.  In  America  only  does  any  consid- 
erable body  of  reflecting  persons  continue  to  have 
faith  in  it.  In  France  and  in  Belgium  the  principle 
never  was  recognized,  and  the  later  tendency  is  dis- 
tinct and  strong  against  its  admission.  In  Great 
Britain,  where  it  originated,  it  is  now  definitely 
abandoned.  In  Germany  the  highest  authorities 
incline  towards  the  idea  of  a confederation  of  rail- 
roads directly  confronting  the  imperial  government 
and  responsible  to  it.  The  movement,  however, 
seems  to  have  its  limits,  and  those  tolerably  well  de- 


214 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


fined.  The  idea  of  state-ownership  can  hardly  be  said 
to  be  growing.  On  the  contrary,  in  those  countries  like 
France  and  Germany,  where  recourse  would  natu- 
rally be  had  to  this  solution  of  the  problem,  the  ten- 
dency seems  now  rather  to  be  towards  a close  regu- 
lation of  the  railroads  by  the  government,  without 
its  owning  them : while  in  other  countries,  where 
the  institutions  are  of  a more  popular  character,  a 
system  of  public  supervision  is  assuming  shape. 
Thus  supervision  would  seem  to  be  the  limit  of  de- 
velopment on  the  one  side,  and  regulation  on  the 
other. 

Owing  to  the  extremely  complicated  character  of 
the  American  railroad  system,  rendering  anything 
like  a territorial  division  among  corporations  impos- 
sible, results  here  work  their  way  out  slowly.  When 
they  do  work  their  way  out,  however,  it  is  apt  to  be 
on  a large  scale  and  in  away  not  easily  susceptible  of 
change.  So  far  as  any  progress  has  yet  been  made, 
it  is  obviously  in  the  direction  indicated, — the  de- 
velopment of  government  supervision  on  the  one 
side,  and  the  concentration  of  railroads  to  escape 
competition  on  the  other.  The  manner,  indeed,  in 
which,  starting  from  different  stand-points  of  inter- 
est and  opposite  sections  of  the  country,  the  Massa- 
chusetts commission  and  the  Southern  Railroad  and 
Steamship  Association  have  unconsciously  worked 
towards  a common  ground,  is  noticeable.  On  the 
one  hand  the  whole  effort  of  the  commission  has 
been  to  develop  a tribunal  which,  in  all  questions 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM . 


215 


affecting  the  relations  of  the  railroad  system  to  the 
community,  should  secure  publicity  and  that  correct 
understanding  of  the  principles  upon  which  only 
legislation  of  any  permanent  value  can  be  based,  and 
which  is  reached  through  intelligent  public  investi- 
gation. That  secured,  all  else  might  safely  be  left  to 
take  its  own  course.  A sufficient  responsibility 
would  be  secured  to  afford  a guarantee  against  abuse. 
On  the  other  hand  the  fundamental  idea  of  the  asso- 
ciation, without  the  realization  of  which  it  remains 
incomplete,  is  to  so  confederate  the  railroad  system 
that  the  members  of  it  should  be  amenable  to  con- 
trol and  that  responsibility  should  attach  to  it. 
Could  the  two  results  be  brought  about,  the  machin- 
ery would  be  complete.  The  confederated  railroad 
system  would  confront  the  government  tribunal,  and 
be  directly  responsible  to  public  opinion.  This  is 
almost  precisely  the  result  arrived  at  in  France  and  in 
Great  Britain,  and  is  that  contemplated  in  Germany. 

It  would  be  altogether  premature  to  predict  with 
any  confidence  that  this  or  a similar  result  will  speed- 
ily be  reached  in  this  country.  Judging  by  experi- 
ence, it  is  more  probable  that  the  development  on 
the  side  of  the  railroad  system  will  far  outstrip  that 
on  the  side  of  the  government.  The  popular  dis- 
belief in  the  possibility  of  any  permanent  combina- 
tion of  the  railroads,  at  once  general  and  effective,  is 
so  complete  that  no  provision  will  be  made  for  it. 
Should  one  be  brought  about  it  will,  however,  in  all 
probability,  once  it  assumes  shape,  assume  it  very 


21 6 


THE  RAILROAD  PROBLEM. 


rapidly.  In  that  case  no  great  degree  of  public  in- 
jury would  necessarily  be  sustained,  but  the  difficulty 
of  thereafter  restoring  the  necessary  equilibrium 
would  be  materially  increased.  Another  and  more 
persistent  political  movement  of  the  Granger  charac- 
ter might  and  probably  would  become  a necessity. 
As  opposed,  however,  to  an  overshadowing  commer- 
cial interest,  so  concentrated  that  all  eyes  and  pas- 
sions could  be  brought  to  bear  upon  it,  this  is  not 
likely  to  be  a movement  difficult  to  originate  or  easy 
to  resist. 


